Maybe managers’ failings aren’t always the reason performance reviews don’t go as well as they should. Maybe the problem, at least some of the time, is the employees being reviewed.

We go to great lengths to make sure managers are prepared for reviews and take the right steps, and we should. But let’s make sure that employees put at least as much into the process. (After all, it is their review.) Following these 10 commandments will help:

I. Take it seriously. If you don’t, who will?

II. Be prepared. Have your questions ready and a summary of your ups and downs since the last review.

III. Focus on the small picture. Be ready to talk about you. Not about business or the big picture: You.

IV. Be realistic about yourself. If you can’t spot any flaws in your performance, you haven’t been looking hard enough.

V. Don’t shift blame. “The dog at my homework” didn’t fly in the fifth grade, and it’s not going to fly now. Some external force got in your way? Then what did you do to overcome it?

VI. Don’t throw yourself on the mercy of the court. No, you weren’t perfect. But you must have done something right. It’s OK to discuss failings; just don’t dwell on them.

VII. Don’t fight. When a performance review turns into a battle, no one wins.

VIII. Don’t ask for a raise. Discuss money well before the review or after the review. It’s a separate item that needs a separate meeting.

IX. Write yourself a letter about the review. After the meeting is over, sit down and write about what happened and what you learned. Putting it into words makes a difference amd gives you a chance to better evaluate how things went.

X. Ask about followup, if necessary. If, at the end of the review or after you’ve evaluated the review by yourself, something’s still a little foggy, request another meeting. If you don’t do that, don’t complain later.

Tags: , performance, performance reviews, raise