This is the most ubiquitous management failure I have committed and witnessed in the workplace.
The situation is simple. Someone on your team has engaged in a behaviour that warrants constructive feedback. As you start to contemplate discussing it, you flinch. Perhaps you don’t know how to raise it, feel awkward or are concerned about hurting their feelings. Whatever the cause, the opportunity to provide feedback passes by.
People want to perform well. They want to know when there is an opportunity for improvement and will [almost] always thank-you for constructive feedback. If you don’t, they won’t grow and the behaviour will continue to repeat until a small problem becomes a much bigger one. Be courageous and start the discussion.
Note
There is a plethora of content about how to effectively provide feedback. I’ll simply point out that feedback should be delivered as close in time to the behaviour as possible, be intended to help the person improve, rather than criticize and always be a discussion (some version of “here is what I observed, how do you think that went?”).
Great insights!