Stop Dreading Performance Reviews

How to turn them into real growth conversations

Annual performance reviews are happening all over the place right now. Some leaders dread them. Some rush them. And a lot of teammates walk out of them thinking, “That didn’t help much.”

In this LRR Chats episode, Tom and I talk through a simple reframe that changes everything:

A performance review is not just a backward-looking evaluation. It’s a leadership moment to create alignment and set conditions for growth.

The big takeaways

1) Alignment is the point.
Alignment on how the year went, what the standard is, what the team needs next, and what success looks like moving forward.

2) Make it a conversation, not a broadcast.
The review loses value fast when it becomes one person talking and the other person nodding. A two-way dialogue builds clarity and trust.

3) Preparation is respect.
The quality of the review usually matches the quality of the prep. We talk about a simple way to capture wins, patterns, and growth edges throughout the year so your feedback is specific, fair, and useful.

4) Candid beats vague.
Avoiding the real feedback doesn’t protect the relationship. It quietly breaks it. Direct feedback can be delivered with care, and it still needs to be clear.

5) Use tools well, but don’t outsource leadership.
We also touch on using AI as a thinking partner to organize your thoughts and prep for tough conversations, while still remembering that leadership is ultimately built through human connection.

A few reflection questions (even if you skip the video)

• If the goal is alignment, what does “aligned” look like when you stand up from the table?

• Where are you tempted to be vague to avoid discomfort?

• What would your teammate say is the most helpful kind of support from you this year?

• If this review was the start of a stronger working relationship, what would change after today?

If you want the deeper nuance, examples, and the back-and-forth between Tom and me, the video will take you the rest of the way.

Watch the episode here and tell me: what makes a performance review feel genuinely useful to you?

-Jenks