What Do Lipstick and Feedback Have in Common?
Years ago, when I was in the Sales Training department at Steelcase, Inc., I became friendly with a woman who was a team leader for the western region. Mindy ultimately became one of my closest friends.
One particular week, when Mindy was in Grand Rapids for a team leaders’ meeting, she made what seemed like an off the cuff remark: “Barbara, you need to wear lipstick.” I was taken aback. Makeup wasn’t important to me. My mother never used lipstick so I never learned to apply it. But the remark gnawed at me all day. That night, I looked through my bathroom cabinets and found a free lipstick sample that had probably been languishing there for years.
The next morning, I applied the lipstick before I went to work. Then I stopped at Steelcase corporate headquarters before joining the team leaders in a different building. Be advised that what I am about to share is in no wayan exaggeration!
At corporate headquarters one person stopped me and said: “Is that a new outfit? It looks great on you.” Another called me over and asked: “Did you get a new hair style?” And a third caught me on my way out and asked: “Did you lose weight?”
So, what’s the moral of the story?
We are getting feedback all of the time. The key question for me is whether I’m open to taking it in!
How about you?
