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I put some effort into writing a sci-fi novel some years back, but I've since realized that the highest income-per-word ratio that I can hope to realize from my

I put some effort into writing a sci-fi novel some years back, but I've since realized that the highest income-per-word ratio that I can hope to realize from my creative writing efforts has to come from my perf self assessment.

zffr 5y ago
I’ve always wondered how much of a direct impact your self assessment actually has on your compensation adjustment. At least in my current job, I feel like my manager already has a ball-park idea of the Comp adjustment to give me. It feels like I would probably get more or less the same adjustment no matter what I write so long as I write something reasonable
- steelframe 5y ago
  Yeah, I hear you. I've always put considerable effort into my self assessments, trying to pick just the right words to make sure it's concise yet potent. However I had already made up my mind to leave my previous employer by the time perf review cycle had come around, so I decided to understate everything as much as I possibly could, basically eliminating all superlatives and just stating as flatly as I possibly could all of the things that happened. My project was "late" -- as in, later than an arbitrary deadline everyone around me was trying to hoist on the project versus what I said all along the timeline was actually going to be. Eschewing metrics, I focused on "soft" issues like supporting members of my team who were struggling with the sudden work-from-home transition. I deliberately kept any mention of ARR, growth, or anything like that out. I still ended up with an "exceeds expectations" rating. My management must have made up their minds ahead of time about that, because what I wrote for my self assessment didn't support it.
- Tycho 5y ago
  Even if your manager will mostly rely on their own judgement, the write-ups will be the only thing that future managers (at the same org) can rely on to learn about your work, and also for things like promotion, your manager will probably need to convince a committee, so being able to draw from your self-assessment will help them argue your case.
  - zffr 5y ago
    Yeah that makes sense thanks. Obvious in retrospect, but I had not considered that people other than my manager might see my self-assessment

zffr 5y ago

I’ve always wondered how much of a direct impact your self assessment actually has on your compensation adjustment. At least in my current job, I feel like my manager already has a ball-park idea of the Comp adjustment to give me. It feels like I would probably get more or less the same adjustment no matter what I write so long as I write something reasonable

steelframe 5y ago
Yeah, I hear you. I've always put considerable effort into my self assessments, trying to pick just the right words to make sure it's concise yet potent. However I had already made up my mind to leave my previous employer by the time perf review cycle had come around, so I decided to understate everything as much as I possibly could, basically eliminating all superlatives and just stating as flatly as I possibly could all of the things that happened. My project was "late" -- as in, later than an arbitrary deadline everyone around me was trying to hoist on the project versus what I said all along the timeline was actually going to be. Eschewing metrics, I focused on "soft" issues like supporting members of my team who were struggling with the sudden work-from-home transition. I deliberately kept any mention of ARR, growth, or anything like that out. I still ended up with an "exceeds expectations" rating. My management must have made up their minds ahead of time about that, because what I wrote for my self assessment didn't support it.
Tycho 5y ago
Even if your manager will mostly rely on their own judgement, the write-ups will be the only thing that future managers (at the same org) can rely on to learn about your work, and also for things like promotion, your manager will probably need to convince a committee, so being able to draw from your self-assessment will help them argue your case.
- zffr 5y ago
  Yeah that makes sense thanks. Obvious in retrospect, but I had not considered that people other than my manager might see my self-assessment