Welcome to The Thinker, a twice-monthly newsletter where I provide thought-provoking questions to help you cultivate a fulfilling and high-performing career.

Hey, hey!

It’s been a while since I sent you a note - Q2 was all hands on deck for me after a major growth season for Coached By McKay; my attention and focus have been squarely on my current clients and supporting their growth. 

But! Now that things have calmed down a bit, I’m back and ready to send you some kick-a$$ emails on a more regular basis 🙂 

Let’s get back into it and tackle a topic that might be top of mind for you right now: mid-year reviews. 

If your company has this process, mid-years are a great opportunity for you to have a strategic conversation with your manager about your growth and your path forward. 

Here are 3 questions to ask yourself as you prepare for this review season: 

1. How have I added value so far this year? 

→ How did I move the bottom line? 

→ How have I helped others win?

At the mid-career level, your manager cares less about your activities and more about how you’re creating value at an org and company level. 

They probably have some sense of how you’ve been successful lately, but this is a good opportunity to connect the dots between your day-to-day interactions and the way you’re leading on a bigger scale. 

2. What do I want feedback on? 

→ What did I do decently well that could have gone better?

→ I think that project / meeting / initiative went sideways because of X, Y, and Z. What am I missing? 

Let’s be real: only the very best managers give clear, actionable feedback. If this is not your boss’s strength, help them out and tease out the feedback you want to receive. 

Come to the review with a few examples and specific questions about how you could have achieved better outcomes. Focus on areas where you believe things went less than ideal, but you just can’t pinpoint why. 

Alternatively, if you are working on your ability to read subtext or play politics, come with working hypotheses for why things didn’t go well and ask your manager if your assumptions are correct. 

3. What’s next on the horizon for me? 

→ What is my next milestone at this company? 

→ Do I know what I need to do to get there? 

Performance reviews are the second-best time to talk about your next promotion or raise. The very best time is at least every month during your regular 1-on-1s with your manager. 😉

While she’s thinking about what you’ve done and how you’re growing, use this opportunity to align on what’s next. Don’t leave the conversation without clarity on what exactly you need to do to reach that next milestone.

That’s all for today! These three questions will help you up-level your prep so you can go into this review session with confidence and strategy. Send me a note and let me know how it goes :)

Cheers,

McKay

P.S. You might have noticed that I’ve switched my email platform to Beehiiv. This should deliver a cooler experience for you, but let me know if you have any feedback!