{"id":63284,"date":"2014-03-04T13:45:32","date_gmt":"2014-03-04T18:45:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/?p=63284"},"modified":"2014-03-02T14:05:58","modified_gmt":"2014-03-02T19:05:58","slug":"tips-for-completing-a-self-evaluation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/?p=63284","title":{"rendered":"Tips for Completing a Self-Evaluation"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Ashley Mancill, Head Editor,\u00a0INALJ Alabama<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Tips for Completing a Self-Evaluation<\/span><\/h3>\n

\"ashleymancill\"<\/a>I recently had to complete a self-evaluation, a task dreaded by nearly every\u00a0employee no matter what field he or she works in. Having been in the position for\u00a0only three months and having limited responsibilities, I couldn\u2019t help feel that I\u00a0hadn\u2019t made any significant contribution or accomplished anything worthwhile.\u00a0So of course, I was not looking forward to completing the assessment or the\u00a0performance review that follows.<\/p>\n

When I finally did sit down to write my evaluation, I decided to focus on what I had\u00a0achieved and on my goals rather than what I hadn\u2019t yet had the opportunity to do.\u00a0And after reading over everything, I felt more confident.<\/p>\n

I won\u2019t say that is true for everyone who has to complete a self-evaluation. But\u00a0these assessments are useful in that they can help employees identify strengths and\u00a0weaknesses and track professional development. Some of you may have a review\u00a0coming up and have to complete a self-evaluation for it. Those of you who do not\u00a0will likely have to complete one before the end of the year. Below are a few tips to\u00a0help you get through it.<\/p>\n

1. Start with positivity<\/strong>. If you focus on what you haven\u2019t achieved, then the\u00a0self-assessment has already worked against you. Having a negative attitude\u00a0will make it all the more difficult for you to get through the evaluation and\u00a0may cause you to undersell yourself and your abilities. Focus instead on\u00a0what you have achieved, no matter how small, and use those achievements\u00a0as motivation. If you are like me and haven\u2019t spent a lot of time working for\u00a0your current employer, discuss what goals you have for the year ahead.<\/p>\n

2. Be honest.<\/strong> When discussing your performance and accomplishments since\u00a0your last evaluation or since you were hired, be sure to address any mistakes\u00a0that you have made or areas where you know you need to improve. Make a\u00a0list of these before you start your evaluation or start keeping a work diary<\/a>\u00a0that you can refer to if your review is still a few months away. If there were\u00a0particular challenges that you faced, write them down and describe how you\u00a0overcame them (or how you plan to overcome them if you are still struggling\u00a0with them). If your company or organization uses a rating system, use these\u00a0notes to rate yourself appropriately (i.e., don\u2019t give yourself a rating of 5 if\u00a0you have made a number of mistakes or if you know you need to work on\u00a0improving a skill or area of knowledge).<\/p>\n

3. But don\u2019t be too<\/em> honest<\/strong>. A self-evaluation is not<\/strong> a chance for you to share\u00a0your grievances or complain about your job, coworkers, or management.\u00a0Those issues should be addressed separately and in person with a supervisor\u00a0or a representative from human resources. Most organizations will ask\u00a0their employees to list or describe in their evaluation some ways in which\u00a0management can improve or steps that the company can take to provide\u00a0a better working environment and increase employee retention. Make\u00a0sure your responses are professionally written and concise, but curb your\u00a0criticism.<\/p>\n

4. Set realistic, achievable goals.<\/strong> Think carefully about what you would like\u00a0to accomplish over the course of the year and explain what steps you plan to\u00a0take to realize these goals. Make sure they are consistent with your overall\u00a0career goals and with your company or organization\u2019s mission. Most of all,\u00a0be practical. There\u2019s no way you can reasonably advance from an entry-level\u00a0position to managing the whole organization in a year. Don\u2019t set the bar to\u00a0high or you could inadvertently set yourself up for a negative review down\u00a0the road.<\/p>\n

5. Take your time<\/strong>. You may have a lot of other job-related tasks to complete\u00a0and feel that you do not have enough time to devote to a self-evaluation. But\u00a0do yourself a favor and make time<\/strong>. The evaluation will most likely go into\u00a0your personnel file, and your supervisor will be able to tell if you rushed\u00a0through it or gave it very little thought (which suggests to them that you did\u00a0not take the evaluation seriously). And because most self-evaluations are\u00a0part of the performance review process, you will want to provide a reflective\u00a0assessment of yourself as an employee and your work. So set aside some\u00a0time to really think about the questions on the evaluation and how well you\u00a0met expectations and fulfilled the duties outlined for your position. If you feel\u00a0that you need more time, ask your supervisor if an extension is possible and\u00a0explain why you need the extra time, especially if you have various deadline-driven projects to complete.<\/p>\n

6. Accept criticism<\/strong>. As previously mentioned, most self-evaluations are used\u00a0by supervisors in employees\u2019 performance reviews. Although you may\u00a0feel you are performing exceptionally in most areas, your supervisor may\u00a0disagree. Instead of getting upset or defensive, accept what your supervisor\u00a0has to say as constructive criticism and ask him or her what you can do to\u00a0improve your performance before your next evaluation. If you are already\u00a0aware that you are underperforming in some areas, strategize ways in which\u00a0you plan to strengthen your knowledge or skills and share your ideas with\u00a0your supervisor. Any disagreement you have with your evaluation should be\u00a0expressed constructively. Ask for specific instances and examples for points\u00a0that you disagree with and provide your own examples to set the record\u00a0straight if you feel there has been a mistake (this is where keeping track of\u00a0your achievements and successes comes in handy). Do not, however, argue\u00a0your point or become confrontational.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Ashley Mancill, Head Editor,\u00a0INALJ Alabama Tips for Completing a Self-Evaluation I recently had to complete a self-evaluation, a task dreaded by nearly every\u00a0employee no matter what field he or she works in. Having been in the position for\u00a0only three months and having limited responsibilities, I couldn\u2019t help feel that I\u00a0hadn\u2019t made any significant contribution…<\/p>\n

Read more \u2192<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":58331,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[145],"tags":[69,5363,3592,3624,6008,6007,111],"class_list":["post-63284","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles","tag-article","tag-ashley-mancill","tag-blog","tag-inalj-alabama","tag-self-assessment","tag-self-evaluation","tag-tips"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/ashleymancill3.png","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1WoMK-gsI","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63284","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=63284"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63284\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/58331"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=63284"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=63284"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=63284"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}