#15 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗼𝗳 ‘𝗦𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗳𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆’ 𝗔𝗽𝗽𝗿𝗮𝗶𝘀𝗮𝗹𝘀

At the start of my career, appraisals were something I dreaded. The idea of sitting across from someone, having my work picked apart, made me uncomfortable. The lead-up was filled with anxiety. But when the meeting finally arrived, I was told something that felt, at first, like a relief:

"You’re doing fine."
"You’re working at a satisfactory level."

No harsh criticism.
No major concerns.
No changes.
At first, I thought, "Okay, this is good. I’m not doing anything wrong."
But then, something hit me.
“𝗦𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗳𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆” 𝘄𝗮𝘀𝗻’𝘁 𝗽𝗿𝗮𝗶𝘀𝗲, 𝗶𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻!

And that’s when I realized the danger of "satisfactory" feedback.
It wasn’t just neutral.
It was demotivating.

Being “satisfactory” placed me fully in the “doing fine” zone. But it didn't recognize my strengths, stretch my potential, or spark curiosity.
Instead, I was left wondering what to improve, what was valued, and what was possible.

𝗕𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗚𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀 𝘀𝘂𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘂𝗽 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗹𝘆 in his TED Talk, "𝙀𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙉𝙚𝙚𝙙𝙨 𝙖 𝘾𝙤𝙖𝙘𝙝". He said:
"Feedback is essential. It doesn’t matter if you’re a CEO or a basketball player (or a radiographer!). Without feedback, there is no real progress. Everyone needs people who can point out where they’re doing well and where they could improve."

But “satisfactory” feedback doesn’t do that.
It doesn’t inspire improvement. It doesn’t stretch skills. It doesn’t push anyone to think bigger. It just marks time. And in a field like radiography, we can’t afford that.

We need feedback that recognizes talent, encourages growth, and challenges us to evolve. Radiographers, like everyone else, need to feel that what they do matters. That they’re moving forward, not just staying in the same spot year after year.

Radiography isn’t just about performing routine tasks. It’s about evolving with technology, improving patient care, and finding ways to work smarter and better. That’s how teams thrive. But tick box appraisals cost us more than time. They cost us team engagement, ambition and retention.

So, here’s the big question:
𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗱𝗶𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗿𝗮𝗶𝘀𝗮𝗹 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗹𝘆 𝗲𝘅𝗰𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗳𝘂𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲?

And if you lead a team, ask yourself:
"Do your appraisal conversations build momentum? Or are you settling for "satisfactory"?