Coaching practices for Feedforward vs Feedback

Describe almost anything you are working through and IX Coach finds the practices whose real-world fit is closest. For Feedforward vs Feedback, these are the strongest matches in the current practice library.

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

• The second someone suggests something, I’m already arguing back in my head
• 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.
• When I try to help someone get better I either go vague and cheerlead
• Every time my partner and I try to swap ideas it slides into scoring points
• I set a goal and then just go quiet on it, never checking where I actually stand until the deadline ambushes me

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. 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
3. 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
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. 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
6. Establish a no-argument rule in feedforward exchanges
   In structured feedforward exchanges, neither party evaluates or debates the suggestions — only listens and notes.
   Feedforward: Future-Focused Feedback That Actually Changes Behavior
7. The Feedback Sandwich: Why It Doesn’t Work and What to Do Instead
   The feedback sandwich (positive–negative–positive) is the dominant model for giving feedback in workplaces, but research and practitioner experience suggest it routinely fails: recipients either remember only the positive parts or dismiss the negative as softened insincerity. The practices below cover why it fails mechanistically and what specific alternatives are better supported.
8. Close the loop with regular, specific feedback
   Goals without feedback are motivationally inert — feedback is the other half.
   Goal Setting Theory, Made Practical
9. Maintain a clear, stable reference point for what good performance looks like
   A feedback loop requires a target — without a stable reference point, data is just noise.
   Feedback Loops and Behavior Change
10. 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

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