The Silent Career Killer: The Cost of Avoiding Feedback (And How to Change in 2025)

Victoria Canham • 4 December 2024 • 3 min read

"Feedback is the breakfast of champions." – Ken Blanchard

As we approach the end of 2024, it’s natural to take stock of the year. Did you hit your professional goals? What about your personal goals? Achieve that elusive work-life balance? Strengthen your relationships at work?

Or does something feel… stuck?

For many professionals, the silent killer of career growth isn’t a lack of ambition, talent, or opportunity—it’s feedback avoidance.

We tell ourselves that it’s easier to skip the hard conversations, nod through reviews without digging deeper, or avoid asking colleagues, clients and peers “How could I do better?” But here’s the truth: avoiding feedback might be the very thing stalling your career.

I get it, no one likes hard conversations, giving them or being on the receiving end of them, but sometimes, it is just one tough conversation preventing you from catapulting yourself through that often self-imposed plateau and on to ever-expanding success.

As you plan for 2025, it’s time to rethink feedback, embrace it, and use it as your secret weapon for success.

How Feedback (or the Lack of It) Shaped 2024

Before looking forward, it’s important to reflect. How has feedback—or its absence—impacted your year?

✳️ Were there moments where honest feedback could’ve helped you grow faster?

✳️ Are there any points where honest feedback would have made you a better leader?

✳️ Did avoiding feedback keep you from addressing issues head-on?

✳️ Are you carrying blind spots that you suspect others see but haven’t shared with you?

Feedback is uncomfortable because it’s personal. But discomfort is often where the growth happens.

Why Feedback Should Be Your 2025 Superpower

Think about the most successful people you admire—leaders, entrepreneurs, innovators. What sets them apart? It’s not that they’re perfect. It’s their ability to ask, “How can I improve?”

Feedback is your shortcut to clarity. It gives you the data you need to make better decisions, avoid repeating mistakes, and accelerate your growth.

In 2025, let feedback fuel your goals. Instead of vague resolutions like “be better at work,” resolve to actively seek insights that help you grow faster and smarter.

3 Year-End Strategies to Start Embracing Feedback

1️⃣ Ask for Feedback Before the Year Ends

December is prime time to gather feedback while 2024 is still fresh in people’s minds.

Schedule a quick chat with your manager, colleagues, or even clients. Ask open-ended questions like:

✳️“What’s one thing I could improve on?”

✳️ “What would make me more effective in my role?”

Pro Tip: Stay bang on trend by remembering “We listen and we don’t judge”.

2️⃣ Reflect and Adjust

Don’t just collect feedback—act on it. Take note of recurring themes, identify what resonates, and start outlining changes you can implement in January.

3️⃣ Set Feedback Goals for 2025

Make feedback a habit. Set a goal to ask for input regularly, whether it’s quarterly or after completing key projects. Treat it as an ongoing dialogue, not a one-time event.

Practical Tools to Keep Feedback Flowing

✳️ The 30-Day Feedback Challenge: Commit to asking for feedback once a week in January.

✳️ Feedback Journal: Log what you hear and how you act on it to track progress over time.

✳️ Enlist a Coach: Professional coaching provides tailored feedback that accelerates growth in ways self-reflection often can’t.

The Cost of Inaction

Avoiding feedback doesn’t just keep you in your comfort zone—it keeps you in a plateau. Being ambitious can be exhausting, it’s time to stop spinning your wheels and take action. (What's the cost of inaction? You can read about that here: The Cost of Doing Nothing)

Let feedback be the key that unlocks clarity, confidence, and measurable progress in 2025.

Ready to make 2025 your breakthrough year? Let’s talk. Book a complimentary discovery call today, and we’ll create a personalised plan for your success.

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Victoria Canham - Your Performance Partner

Victoria is an ICF-accredited certified professional coach, who offers personalised performance coaching. With a background in change management and countless hours of professional coaching training and experience, I made the big switch to full-time coaching in 2020. I know what it is like to suddenly have the rug pulled out from under you while you're busy making other plans, as a result, I now help people like you to bounce back from adversity and major setbacks to emerge stronger and better than ever before. Our clients have transformed from feeling overwhelmed by life's challenges to confident, goal-driven individuals who navigate life's obstacles with ease. They've achieved their personal and professional objectives and embodied peak performance in all aspects of life. You too can experience this transformation. This is your moment. Your chance to take control, to choose growth over stagnation, achievement over inaction. This is your opportunity to prove to yourself that you're not defined by your challenges—you're defined by how you rise above them. Are you ready to transform your life and achieve peak performance?