Feedback can be helpful and sometimes life-changing. Of course, responding to positive feedback is easier, but we sometimes get negative feedback.
Feedback can be used to improve your skills or adjust your life. The feedback can come from friends, family, bosses, or someone else.
Key Insights:
- Three types of feedback from the Thanks for the Feedback book
- How to respond to feedback received
- Thank you for your feedback examples messages.
- At work
- Your personal life
- Positive feedback
- Negative feedback
For examples of how to reply to customer reviews, check out the tips and templates from ReviewTrackers.
Thanks for the Feedback Book
In preparing for this post, I read part of the book “Thanks for the Feedback.” I read the first half before tiring of the examples and advice.
The book seemed good, but it was more than I needed then. You can find a complete summary of it here.
The three types of feedback:
- Appreciation – thank, acknowledge, connect.
- Coaching – helps to expand knowledge, sharpen skills, and address relationship imbalances.
- Evaluation – to rate or rank against a set of standards, align expectations, and inform decision-making.
And with feedback, there is a giver and a receiver. Sometimes the giver and receiver are not on the same page of what type of feedback is being given or desired, causing friction. You may want to clarify which type of feedback you’d like before asking for the feedback.
How to Say Thank You For Your Feedback
Once you’ve received feedback that may have been positive, negative, or indifferent, you may want to send a thank you message.
- Decide if you will send an email or handwrite a note.
- Most likely, you will email or hand-deliver a note in work situations. In personal situations, you may want to mail the note.
- Use the template below to help structure your message.
- Be specific in your message about why you are thankful for the feedback.
- Did it help you improve something? Point out an issue you didn’t realize you had? Help you make a change?
- Review the examples below for inspiration in what you could say in your message
Thank You for Your Feedback Template
For the template and examples, replace words in [brackets] as appropriate for your situation. This template could be used in an email or a handwritten note.
[Person’s name]
Thank you for your feedback regarding [topic]. What you shared with me will help me to improve [what you will improve]. Add another sentence or two (compliments are good!).
Thanks again (or another closing),
[Your Name]
- For negative feedback, you can acknowledge that it was not easy to hear.
- If you feel angry about negative feedback, wait a few days to write your thank you. You don’t want to say anything you will regret later. And a little time will allow you to look for a nugget of truth in the feedback.
- If you have a lot to say, you can write a longer letter.
- The examples below are only the center section of the note. Be sure to include the greeting, the closing, and your name in your note.
Thank You for Your Feedback Message Examples
Generally, the best thank-you notes contain specific details and are not generic or cliché. I have created scenarios for these examples, but they may still feel generic. I encourage you to replace or insert wording to make them specific to your situation.
For example, the first example refers to a project. In your note, you could swap out the project with exactly what you were working on.
Office or work situations are common feedback situations, so I used the feedback I’ve given or received at my job as the framework for the examples.
Related: Thank you for your insight messages
Thank You For Your Feedback At the Office Example Messages
These examples will show you how to thank your boss or coworker for their feedback. Some of the examples will help you write a thank you email after your performance review.
#1 Thank you for your feedback regarding my performance on the recent project. What you shared with me will help me better communicate with others on the next project. I appreciate your continued guidance.
#2 Your feedback during my annual review is very much appreciated. Now, I know how to move forward and what to focus on to improve my skills. I was surprised by
#3 Thanks for the feedback. I felt very appreciated after hearing your kind words about my abilities. As you suggested, I will continue learning more about [topic]. You are a great boss!
#4 Thank you for meeting with me and providing quick feedback. I was stuck on how to move the situation forward. The wording you recommended for the email to the client was perfect. They responded quickly and are happy with us.
#5 Thank you for the detailed feedback. Now I know what I need to do to refine the work processes. Your ideas were fantastic and not items the team had thought of.
#6 Thank you for the excellent feedback. I feel great working on your team and am grateful you took the time to tell me. Appreciation and acknowledgment feel great.
#7 In last week’s meeting, you provided detailed feedback. Some of it was positive, and some of it was negative. I am glad you mixed in some positive as it made hearing the negative points easier to hear. Over the weekend, I considered your feedback and enrolled in your recommended online learning courses.
#8 Thank you for taking the time to provide your feedback. Reaching out to you was hard as I wasn’t sure what type of coaching you would be willing to give. I am grateful for your positive response and the mentoring meetings you’ve scheduled with me.
#9 Thank you for the kind feedback. I was surprised when [Manager’s Name] passed on all the positive things you said about my new project input. And I look forward to working with your team on future projects.
#10 I want to thank you for pointing out that I could have been doing better with [issue/skill] last week. It was tough for me to hear as I thought I was doing fine, but as I considered your examples, I realized that there are improvements that I can make. Sometimes it’s just hard to hear negative feedback. I am also glad you told me, as I think others on the team have probably noticed the same issues.
#11 Thank you for the feedback during our meeting yesterday I will begin making the recommended changes on how I respond customers right away. I’m grateful that you pointed out there are better ways to respond to negative emails.
Related: Thank you for the opportunity messages.
Negative Feedback From My Boss
Getting unexpected negative feedback can feel like an ambush, like my performance review at my job one year.
I went into my review thinking all was well and was very surprised by what I perceived as negative feedback. That night, I went home and cried. After processing what he said over the weekend, I agreed that there was some truth in the information he had given to me.
And in the end, I was thankful that he shared what he said, even if I didn’t like it at the time, and the issues hadn’t been mentioned previously. As a result, I could choose to make the recommended improvements.
Thank You For Your Feedback in Your Personal Life Example Messages
Here are ways to say thank you for your feedback within personal relationships.
#1 Thanks for your prompt feedback. I am grateful that you told me about my problem with [problem area] right away. I was not aware of it until you pointed it out. Now, I will be able to make changes. Let’s hope I can stick to the changes long-term.
#2 Thank you for the quick feedback when I sent you my idea about [topic/book proposal/whatever it was]. Now, I can make some adjustments and start on the next steps.
#3 Meeting expectations can be challenging. I am so glad we finally talked about the household chores and made a plan we are both happy with. Thank you for bringing it up and focusing just on the chore issue. You and I make a great team when we can work together.
#4 I have enjoyed receiving your tips and instructions during my physical therapy sessions. Your feedback about how to stretch and walk properly will change my life. My knees are pain-free! And I will take your recommendation to work with a personal trainer once my therapy is completed.
#5 Thanks for your valuable feedback. I appreciate the time you took to review my budget with me. Your quest for financial independence has inspired me. With the changes you pointed out that you outlined, I anticipate saving several hundred dollars each month.
#6 Thank you for the nice feedback. As a teacher, I receive much more negative feedback than positive. The wonderful notes like yours help keep me going and attending class each day.
#7 You are a wonderful friend! Thank you for being willing to share feedback whenever you ask. I can trust you to tell me the truth, even if it’s not what I want to hear. Your honesty has helped me improve [in the note, provide specific details] during the past years.
#8 Sometimes, we only know what we need to improve once it’s pointed out. Thank you for your detailed feedback. I had no idea I’d been rubbing you the wrong way by asking lots of questions at once. I will take your suggestions to change my behavior to improve our relationship and communication.
#9 Thanks for the feedback regarding how I can improve [what you needed to improve]. The thirty-day reading plan you put together should help me stay focused and learn more about [topic]. Let’s plan to meet again next month.
#10 Thanks a lot for your feedback. I’m grateful to have you as a friend. I will follow your tips about [topic] and let you know how it goes. I hope you have a wonderful day!
Thank You for Your Positive Feedback Example Messages
These sample messages could be written in an email when responding to positive feedback from your manager, boss, coworker, employees, or someone else.
#1 Thank you for your positive feedback during my review. I enjoyed hearing what you had to say about my job performance. I am looking forward to another wonderful year at [Company Name].
#2 Thank you for taking the time to leave such good feedback throughout my year-end evaluation. It was fantastic to hear what you had to say about my work on the big projects. I’m excited for another fantastic year of working together. We have the best team!
#3 I was excited and grateful to read my teammates’ positive reviews during my first quarterly review. I really appreciate your efforts to collect them. I am proud to be part of this team and will continue to build my skills as I learn from others.
#4 I was ecstatic and pleased to read my coworkers’ positive feedback. I am honored to be a member of this group and will continue to improve my abilities as I gain experience from others. Thank you for your positive feedback as well.
#5 Thank you for the positive feedback regarding [topic]. I appreciate your comments and in-depth responses on where I’m doing well. I value your feedback because of your long experience with [topic].
#6 While no one wants bad reviews, I appreciate that you included some positive feedback in my review. Hearing that I am doing well in some areas helped me feel less down about the areas where I struggle. As you suggested, I will take the additional training classes.
#7 I want to thank you for your positive feedback. As I develop the new training material for the customer service department, it’s helpful and encouraging to learn that the new documentation is good. Thank you for taking the time to review it.
#8 Wow, thanks for your positive feedback. I was surprised by it and feel glad you are happy with my work. I enjoy working on your team and continue to improve our customer relationships with the vendors.
#9 Hearing the positive feedback from you made my day! Thank you for praising me at the team meeting. You’re a great boss to work for, and of course, I enjoy the whole team. I will look forward to the next team collaboration project.
#10 Thank you for your positive feedback. I am grateful to know where my work excels, as I can focus on getting those skills even better. Thank you for taking the time yesterday to share with me. I’m super excited about the next project.
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Heidi has been writing thank you notes for more than 30 years and is the author of A Modern Guide to Writing Thank-You Notes. Her goal is to help people write better thank-you notes by providing tips and examples.