Coaching practices for Feedforward Future Focused Feedback That Actually Changes Behavior When Starting Out

Describe almost anything you are working through and IX Coach finds the practices whose real-world fit is closest. For Feedforward Future Focused Feedback That Actually Changes Behavior When Starting Out, these are the strongest matches in the current practice library.

Does this sound like the set of challenges you might be facing?

• We’re about to kick off something new and everyone has private hunches about what it’ll take to pull off
• When I try to help someone get better I either go vague and cheerlead
• Whenever I ask how I’m doing, the answer comes back as a verdict on what I already screwed up, and I spend the whole conversation defending myself instead of actually learning anything I could use next time.
• The second someone suggests something, I’m already arguing back in my head
• I tell someone what went wrong but never say what I actually want instead, so they walk away knowing they messed up with no idea what "right" looks like

Practices that may help

1. Feedforward: Future-Focused Feedback That Actually Changes Behavior
   Feedforward, developed by executive coach Marshall Goldsmith, replaces backward-looking critique with forward-looking suggestions — asking "what ideas do you have for the future?" rather than "what did I do wrong?" The core claim is that people are more receptive to ideas about what they could do than to judgments about what they did. Evidence is primarily clinical and practitioner-based rather than from controlled trials.
2. Use feedforward to align team members on goals before projects begin
   At the start of a project, invite feedforward on how to succeed — before any performance to critique.
   Feedforward: Future-Focused Feedback That Actually Changes Behavior
3. Give feedforward as specific, actionable ideas — not generic encouragement
   When giving feedforward, offer two concrete behavioral ideas, not praise or abstract advice.
   Feedforward: Future-Focused Feedback That Actually Changes Behavior
4. Feedback Loops and Behavior Change
   Feedback loops are the mechanism by which information about the gap between current and desired performance reaches the actor and drives adjustment. Cybernetics established the theoretical foundation; decades of applied research confirm that self-monitoring and feedback are among the most robust behavior-change techniques — particularly for health behaviors. The key design questions are feedback frequency, the right metric, and the gap between signal and response.
5. Ask for ideas about the future, not assessments of the past
   Replace "how did I do?" with "what ideas do you have for how I could do better?"
   Feedforward: Future-Focused Feedback That Actually Changes Behavior
6. Receive every suggestion with only "thank you"
   Accept all feedforward without debate, justification, or even agreement — just acknowledge and note.
   Feedforward: Future-Focused Feedback That Actually Changes Behavior
7. Add a forward-looking request to SBI
   Pair the impact statement with a specific, doable request for next time.
   The SBI Feedback Model, Made Practical
8. Create a feedback acknowledgment ritual to close each tracking cycle
   A brief, consistent closing ritual after reviewing behavioral data anchors the feedback loop and prevents it from becoming pure surveillance.
   Feedback Loops and Behavior Change
9. Replace performance review conversations with feedforward conversations
   In coaching conversations, ask "what could you do differently?" instead of "what went wrong?"
   Feedforward: Future-Focused Feedback That Actually Changes Behavior
10. Build immediate feedback loops into every repetition
    Shorten the gap between action and information about that action to minutes, not days.
    Growth-Edge Training: Practicing at the Edge of Your Ability

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