Tips for Writing a Great Self-Evaluation

Let’s face it: Talking about yourself—whether it’s about the good, the bad, or the ugly—is just plain awkward. It’s tough to admit to weaknesses when your livelihood is on the line, and not everyone enjoys trumpeting their wins either. Unfortunately, self-reflection is also a crucial element of success at work. Many companies have implemented self-evaluations as part of their performance review processes, and that’s actually a good thing for a few key reasons:

• Self-evaluations give employees a chance to advocate for themselves.
• You can bring to light projects or skills that might otherwise go unnoticed.
• It’s a regular opportunity to ensure you and your manager are aligned on how you’re doing and where you’d like to focus your energy.

So if you can’t beat them, let’s get on board and make sure you have the tools and examples to help you write a great self-evaluation in your next performance review.

What Is a Self-Evaluation?

A self-evaluation is typically one element of a company’s performance review process, which usually occurs quarterly, semi-annually, or annually. In the self-evaluation, employees reflect upon and write about their own contributions to the company during the past performance period, as well as areas for growth. Performance reviews traditionally include feedback from managers and peers, and the self-evaluation can help balance those inputs by allowing the employee to highlight what went well and discuss opportunities from their own perspective.

Self-evaluations are also helpful for employers; they provide important insights about the employee experience and can help gauge how aligned managers and workers are about expectations. They can highlight internal disconnects where employees, for example, may feel they are meeting goals while managers observe gaps in performance or outcomes. 

Performance review processes vary from company to company, but a typical self-evaluation usually includes the following:

• Achievements: How did you perform from a metrics perspective? Did you accomplish the goals or deliver the key results specified at the beginning of the performance period? If not, where do you stack up and why were those targets unmet?
• Strengths: In addition to what you’ve accomplished, discuss how. This is a chance to spotlight soft skills, effective collaboration, and your influence across the team. 
• Development areas: What do you view as your biggest opportunities for growth? Where can you improve, and what would you prioritize working on in the next performance period?

How to Prepare for Your Self-Evaluation

Pulling together a successful self-assessment goes a lot more smoothly with a little planning ahead of time. Here are some tips to keep in mind while you prepare.

1. Make notes in real time. Just like feedback, insights are best captured in the moment. Track your performance against OKRs during the course of the quarter or year, and keep notes about your wins, like navigating unexpected obstacles or exceeding goals you set for yourself. That will make listing achievements a breeze when it comes to your self-evaluation, rather than wracking your brain for details from bygone projects. 
2. Reflect honestly. How do you really feel about your performance over the past several months? Were you challenged by the goals you set, or did you meet them with ease? Was there anything going on within the team or your life that impacted your performance? Clarify your own feelings so you know how to frame your review, either advocating for more responsibility or taking the chance to reset expectations.
3. Review feedback from your manager and peers. Get familiar with your team’s most recent feedback, and take in both the praise and any constructive comments. Your self-evaluation will be a chance to provide any additional context on situations they brought up or extrapolate on how you’d like to improve based on their suggestions.

Self-Evaluation Examples

Finally, let’s get into examples of how you might discuss your wins and opportunities in your self-evaluation. As a general rule, stick to the facts, be specific with examples, and point to data whenever you can.

Achievements

• “I exceeded an OKR I set this year to grow our newsletter subscribers by 20%.” 
• “I developed an experiment that helped increase customer NPS by X points.” 
• “A project I led resulted in X% higher conversion of leads coming in from our organic channels.”

Strengths

• “I consistently meet project deadlines and am proactive about communicating any changes to timelines so as not to disrupt workflows for collaborating teams.”
• “I recognize when I need to delegate tasks and am efficient at doing so to keep projects on track.”
• “I am committed to my career growth and seek out learning opportunities without prompting, including training sessions or mentorship.”

Collaboration

• “I commit to getting back to co-workers in a timely manner on requests. I have met my goal of responding within 24 hours and sticking to quoted times for deliverables.”
• “I regularly contribute my ideas in team meetings and provide authentic, constructive feedback to support our team’s growth and success.”
• “My colleagues appreciate that I follow up on projects with metrics and outcomes so that we can continue learning and prioritize future work.”

Development Areas

• “I’d like to take the lead on project management, but I get nervous when presenting or speaking up during large meetings. I’d like to take some public speaking classes to overcome this.” 
• “I’ve noticed that our scheduling delays on the last project were due to communication errors between my team and our stakeholders. Is there someone from their department I can work with to learn more about their operations and work towards a joint solution?”
• “In order to get closer to my goal of being a manager, I’d like to take a stab at mentoring newer team members.” 

Hopefully these examples inspire you to celebrate your own work accomplishments and help you take charge of your career trajectory. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to represent how valuable you are to the team and to take an active role in plotting the next steps of your growth.