Why this matters
You probably want a raise. Maybe even a promotion in title and responsibility. You might feel like you’re killing it, giving it your all. You might think your manager thinks so too. But do they? Do you think you’re an A-player? Do they? How do you know?
It doesn’t have to be bureaucratic.
You just need your manager to have a dedicated conversation about your performance for the quarter.
This is why goal setting is critical. If you have goals, a big chunk of the conversation around your performance is based on the goals you and your manager agreed upon.
If you accomplished all your goals but your manager still gives you a review that indicates you weren’t successful or otherwise came up short, you need to have a conversation with your manager that says, “here are the goals we agreed on, i achieved them; i don’t understand how you can say i wasn’t successful”
You should receive recognition for a job well done and coaching on where you can improve.
If your manager indicates performance needs to improve, there should be clear, achievable goals set to establish that is your priority.
Here’s why you need to take notes during your 1-on-1s
Your review from your manager should really just be a recap of what you’ve heard all quarter long.
If you’re blindsided by wildly new feedback, pull up the notes; share with your manager and say, we’ve been meeting all quarter, and you’ve never shared that feedback or given me that direction until now.
The great thing about your notes? Super unlikely your manager took notes; you have the documentation; they don’t. You win any disagreements there.
When to push back
Like job descriptions, goals are about what need to get done, what the priorities and what success looks like. Goals shouldn’t define how you’re going to achieve them. You don’t know yet. Goals need to focus on the outcome, not the input (the work you did toward the goal).
If your boss likes the idea of you having goals and then decides to email you a long doc with what they think your goals are, you either want to push back, or look for another job. This needs to be a conversation; you need to be able to have input here.
Your goals are the bigger pieces of work you’re going to deliver, not all the little things. Emailing a weekly report to your boss isn’t a goal; that’s just ongoing work.
Avoid copy-pasting from Claude or Chat on what your goals are. Ideally, a goals conversation with your manager is going to drive both of you to actually think about what’s important. It shouldn’t be arbitrary; you’re not checking a box, just to say you have goals. You’re asking your manager to create agreement and shared understanding of what your success looks like.