Many workplaces have developed a culture of toxic politeness.
Employees and managers are often afraid to give honest feedback for fear of offending one another. When constructive feedback is given, it’s buried within so many compliments that the message and opportunity to learn are lost.
That’s why leaders like Chris Cavallini are on a mission to bring healthy, direct candor back to the workplace.
Honest feedback is about the message
Cavallini’s company, Nutrition Solutions, crafts healthy, high-protein meals to help its clients optimize their health, physique and confidence. In a business like this, attention to detail and brutally honest direct feedback is critical. Nutrition Solutions prides itself on its clients’ results. So, if the leadership team — or Cavallini himself — sugarcoats feedback or doesn’t say what they actually mean, there’s a significant chance that clients will receive substandard food, service, and results.
As the CEO, Cavallini still personally samples every meal prior to mass production, and the company’s weekly meetings have been engineered specifically to ensure standards are maintained.
“We’re always looking to level up both the product and the team. We’re not in the business of selling food — we’re in the business of changing lives. That means standards need to be upheld without exception,” stated Mark Davis, director of cultural innovation at Nutrition Solutions.
If a meal is not up to par during a menu-tasting meeting, Cavallini lets it be known immediately. To elevate levels of accountability, the team at Nutrition Solutions films each menu tasting and shares the content on its social media channels. As a part of their commitment to radical candor, they don’t cherry-pick interactions where the culinary team knocked it out of the park either.
Why this isn’t a cringe
For example, in a recent Instagram post, Cavallini expressed his displeasure at the way a popular menu item was prepared that day, spitting the food out into a napkin. He then went on to say, “This is such a deviation from what it normally is. It was obvious to me right away just by looking at it that it was dry. Putting that in front of me is almost an insult, and I would like for you guys to see it that way. Please don’t ever bring anything that bad into this room again.”
“If you guys are putting something in front of me and it’s that bad, it’s impossible for me not to naturally worry about the potential that we’re going to send our clients something like that,” he continues. “It’s impossible for me not to go there. Do you understand why?”
That exchange is a typical example of the feedback that’s critical to Nutrition Solutions’ success.
Cavallini’s voice is calm, and his tone is respectful. He believes in honest feedback, not in berating his employees. However, he makes sure the team understands the issue at hand, why it’s a problem and what they can do to make sure the same issue doesn’t pop up again.
Insist on high standards
Standards are important to Cavallini, both in the workplace and in his personal life. But that wasn’t always the case.
“I used to have low standards,” he says. “During that time, I was struggling, constantly stressed and could never figure out why life was so hard. My time in the military helped me learn that without clearly defining standards, you can’t meet them.”
Maintaining high standards with products, service and customer experience has been instrumental in the company’s explosive growth. Nutrition Solutions is coming off a record-breaking revenue year and is on pace to surpass 2023’s numbers by 50% in 2024.
However, Cavallini isn’t only interested in building his company and growing the bottom line.
As a leader, he believes he has a responsibility to actively improve his team. Direct, honest feedback on an ongoing basis plays into this goal. But in order to use that feedback to grow, team members might need to examine and adjust their mindsets regarding constructive criticism.
“If someone can’t take direct feedback about something they’re not exceptional in without getting their ego bruised, they forfeit their ability to grow and certainly can’t be part of my team,” Cavallini says.
“Feedback is a currency, one that gives us the opportunity to grow without limits.” He cautions, “If you have a hard time taking feedback, be prepared to always be passed up for the promotion, raise or opportunity.”
To some people, such candid feedback might feel like an insult initially or, worse, an attack.
Radical candor should be a gift
Cavallini notes that giving feedback can be as uncomfortable as getting it, but that direct and honest feedback is a kind of gift. “Giving brutally honest direct feedback is uncomfortable,” he says. “So if someone cares enough to give it to you, you should appreciate it immensely.”
He also believes that having standards and communicating them clearly are important not only in the workplace but also in life.
“If you want to successfully change your life, you have to raise your standards. You need to become intolerant of your current circumstances and start showing up like the person you aspire to be. When you have high standards, your life changes quickly. It’s not easy, though,” he says. “People will resent you and criticize you. You’ll 100% lose friends along the way. Regardless, it’s worth it. The last thing that you ever want to do is lower your standards for the comfort of other people.”
Opinions expressed by SmartBrief contributors are their own.
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