The Ultimate Self-Evaluation Guide (+Tips and Examples)

Most professionals don't need so much convincing on the need for performance reviews by their managers. But, when it comes to self-evaluation, the enthusiasm isn't often the same. And we get it! It's not always easy to identify our strengths and weaknesses. However, no review is a walk in the park. Even managers also need tips to maximize their performance reviews. 

So, while self-evaluation may not be your favorite activity, it is essential for personal and professional growth. It's a time to demonstrate what an asset you are to the company by analyzing and reflecting on your performance and contribution throughout a given period and putting it in writing.

Why does Self-Evaluation Matter?

Self-evaluations vary from organization to organization. Some use self-evaluation templates for different self-assessment activities while others allow their staff to freestyle. Regardless of how formal or informal it is, self-assessing is important.

A paper by Harvard Business School highlights the connection between the intentional attempt to articulate lessons and optimal performance.

So, here are three reasons to evaluate yourself today:

1. Recognizing Accomplishments

You may have never recognized some achievements without a deliberate retrospection because achievements may be vague until they're highlighted. 

Employees can reflect on accomplishments by candidly assessing wins and opportunities and patting themselves on the back. They can also see opportunities for improvement and prepare goals for the next year to accommodate tasks that will aid development and growth.

2. Improved Job Security

A good performance appraisal can lead to a raise and improved job security. Often, employees may try to get a raise without adequate data and metrics to back it. Self-evaluation sessions allow you to correctly highlight all the positive attributes and areas that make you a good fit for a raise and use them to make your case. In addition, if an employee's contract is ending, a self-evaluation allows you to increase your chances of getting a retainer instead of relying solely on your manager for a befitting performance review.

3. Boost Your Morale

An effective self-evaluation session is often the perfect morale boost. It could serve as the driving force an employee needs to do more. By summarizing a year or quarter high quality work (as the case may be), you can see how great you've been doing despite a supposedly bad year.

On the other hand, it may also highlight the areas for improvement. There may be situations where employees realize they've not been doing as great as they thought. And while this may seemingly look bad, it can also serve as an excellent opportunity to map out smart goals and improve instead of just striving in the dark.

Now that we understand the benefits of self-evaluation, how do you craft effective self appraisal comments and reports to ensure that your evaluation is on par with others? Let's jump right in! This article will guide you with some tips and self-evaluation examples for making the most of this process in your professional life.

5 Tips for Writing an Effective Self-Evaluation Report

An effective evaluation will ensure that you score highly and are recognized for your efforts. No matter how familiar you are with self-evaluation sessions, there's always room for improvement. 

Here are five tips for writing an effective self-evaluation report:

1. Carve Out Enough Time – The more time you have, the less pressure you feel

While working in a timely manner is typically a plus, it may not apply here. Completing your self-evaluation a few minutes before the review period may not give you the best outcome. Like most other vital reviews or assessments, adequate time allows you to answer questions in detail without avoidable pressure.

Reflecting on a year's wins, challenges, and achievements requires proper data collection, brain-racking, and research. If your organization doesn't have a template for self-evaluation, you may need even more time to reflect and make jottings, then draft out, build it, and finally proofread. 

2. Be Specific – Specificity gives your review context

In addition to other uses, self-evaluation results may be a deciding factor for a raise, promotion, or contract renewal. Therefore, being vague may do the opposite of increasing your chances.

Specificity gives context and allows you to highlight your skills, approaches, wins, time management skills, and the challenges you encountered strategically. You can also highlight instances where you showed particular skills that align with the company's values and how you achieved them. It could be your collaboration skills, innovation, or being proactive. If specificity is a challenge for you, you can list the skills and abilities you want to highlight, then build on them using instances that illustrate them.

3. Be Honest – Honesty means taking responsibility, and that's always a good thing

Whether you have more losses than wins or didn't meet your KPIs as you would be proud of, it's still important to highlight them. While being honest about challenges and shortcomings, endeavor to frame weaknesses as opportunities for growth.

The best self evaluation responses don't focus solely on what was done well, but it's not enough to give positive feedback and just mention the problems. It would be best if you also wrote how you could improve, including areas where you need external help. Like suggesting ways that you think managers can help, e.g.: clearer timelines, benchmarks, etc. This will show that you can be critical and objective about your job performance.

4. Use Numbers – Metrics enable employers to connect performance and results

Metrics serve as evidence to back up your accomplishments. Numbers not only put results in perspective, but they also help employees have a clear standard to assess their own performance.  Numbers also allow you to build measurable goals and track your progress. Showing numbers also gives you leverage to negotiate raises or other benefits on the table.

5. Use Proper Terms - Business-speak reduces the chances of a misunderstanding 

It's easy to assume that managers know the nitty-gritty of your work. But they may not. While they should know a substantial amount, the manager they report to may not have the slightest clue. So, proper terminologies are crucial to writing an effective performance evaluation and self-evaluation.

Endeavor to clearly describe what you do in relation to your team and organization. You can also highlight other self-development activities that may not be strictly about work, ranging from volunteer work in a nonprofit organization to courses you've taken. 

Self-Assessment Examples to Guide You When Writing Your Self-Evaluation

Writing an effective self-evaluation can be tricky, it calls for a certain level of self-awareness. But, it's not impossible.  Based on roles and responsibilities, and desired professional development, different organizations have different methods and specific metrics to measure. 

You can also make your self-evaluation process easier by learning about the Self-Evaluation Flow.

You're probably wondering, what do you write in a self-evaluation and what are some performance self appraisal assessment examples? Here are some employee self-evaluation sample answers to help you stay on track while writing a self-review that demonstrates performance and highlights areas for growth:

Teamwork and Collaboration

Strengths 

- Working in a team allows me to bring out the best in myself and my teammates. I produce the best outcomes in a team because everyone is comfortable enough to put their best foot forward when they can and take a step back when they genuinely can't. This allows for inclusivity and higher productivity. 

{Give an example of a situation where effective teamwork produced an excellent result, the role you played, and the results}

Opportunity for growth

- I often struggle with delegating complex tasks to team members, especially the new staff, and it overwhelms me. As we advance, I would suggest that we have a departmental onboarding in addition to the company-wide onboarding. There, I can attend and ensure that the new employees for the department understand their deeper tasks. 

Communication

Strengths 

- I have strong interpersonal skills that help me effectively identify the best ways to communicate with clients and colleagues. I have also improved my communication skills with the help of tools such as Slack and Workplace. I am a team member who can actively listen and is consistently using constructive feedback and working on their listening skills.

{Give an example of a situation where clear communication saved a misunderstanding, the role you played, and the results}

Opportunity for growth

-I realized that when I feel stressed or under pressure in meetings, I often struggle to share my thoughts or concerns. In the future, I can improve on this by jotting things down before sharing my opinion. I'd also like my manager to tell team members about the meeting agenda before the meeting so that people are more prepared. 

Problem-Solving and Critical Thinking

Strengths

-I excel in solving problems because of my analytical skills. I'm comfortable taking issues piece by piece until I find the root cause. I also took a problem-solving course last quarter to develop this skill. This skill has come in handy in team tasks as I can find solutions quickly and carry my team along the process when the need arises. It also helps me develop my leadership skills.

{Give an example of a situation where critical thinking and technical skills helped you solve a problem, the role you played, and the result}

Opportunity for growth

-I often get caught up while solving complex problems, and my other tasks suffer. Moving forward, I'll work with other team members to get things done quicker, and I'll also manage my time better by allocating time slots to various tasks and sticking to them. 

What should you not say in an evaluation?

While there are no hard and fast rules on what to include and what not to do, a self-evaluation session is not the time and place for some things. It's not the time to:

1. Defend your mistakes
2. Push the blame
3. Only give credit to teamwork or teammates
4. Ask for a raise
5. Pretend to understand manager feedback when you don't

Ready to Begin?

When it comes to curating self-evaluation questions, the main goal is to improve your performance, so you're better able to get the job done. Identify where you are making mistakes in your work and use that to improve yourself. It's vital to know what went wrong and what was good, then fill those knowledge gaps to become a better employee. 

One final key: Your self-evaluation will only be as strong as you make it. It's best to do your own self-evaluation regularly throughout the year to stay on top of what's important and how you can make improvements.