No-Stress Employee Reviews: How to Have Productive Performance Discussions With Your Self-Storage TeamNo-Stress Employee Reviews: How to Have Productive Performance Discussions With Your Self-Storage Team

Employees often dread their regular performance reviews. That’s no secret. The truth is supervisors can feel anxious about the process, too. Handled the wrong way, these discussions can be uncomfortable and unproductive. It’s time to boot the old way of doing things and focus on a fresh approach, so evaluations are less stressful and bring value to everyone involved.

Michael Baillargeon, Chief Operating Officer

January 21, 2025

9 Min Read
A man talking to a laughing Asian woman

Ah, yes. It’s that magical time again! The air crackles with tension, everyone’s slurping down coffee like it’s about to be canceled, and sick days skyrocket. You guessed it: It's time for staff-performance reviews! If you’re lucky, you’ve caught that stomach bug that’s been going around and you might be able to dodge the bullet for a few days.

But let’s be real for a second. While this whole performance-evaluation circus is great fodder for jokes, it’s no laughing matter. This process is essential to your self-storage company’s growth, employee development and productivity, and team retention. The problem is it’s usually accompanied by enough stress to make a yoga retreat sound appealing, even to the least limber among us.

In this article, we're going to unravel the mysteries of the self-storage employee review, focusing on how you can walk the tightrope between objectivity and empathy, and maybe even toss in some humor to keep things from feeling like a courtroom drama. I’ll arm you with real strategies and insights that’ll allow you to be the hero of team-evaluation season rather than the villain.

So, buckle up, grab that stress ball you won at the last team-building exercise, and let’s transform this dreaded process into something less miserable. Who knows? You might even crack a smile or two along the way.

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The Traditional Approach to Performance Reviews: A Recipe for Disaster

Before we get into ways to improve the employee-review process for your self-storage team, let's acknowledge the conundrum in which we all find ourselves. The way staff reviews are currently conducted is, to put it mildly, a hot mess wrapped in human-resources lingo. Here’s how it usually goes down:

  • The supervisor frantically scrolls through emails trying to remember what the employee did six months ago.

  • The employee spends several sleepless nights dreading the moment they have to sit in that awkward office chair.

  • Both parties engage in an Olympic-level competition of forced smiles and polite nodding before launching into the real conversation.

  • The supervisor drones on with corporate speak like “synergizing your proactive initiatives” while the employee mentally composes their resignation letter.

  • Both walk away wondering, “What just happened?” and “Do we really have to do this again in six or 12 months?”

Sound familiar? If you’re nodding so hard your neck might snap, congratulations, you’ve survived the standard performance-review process. But this approach doesn’t exactly set up your self-storage employees for success. Let’s break down the issues with this traditional approach:

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  • Recency bias: The supervisor only remembers the last few weeks of work, maybe a couple of months. Older accomplishments and problems seem to disappear into the ether, just like your car keys.

  • Lack of continuous feedback: Why wait six months or even a year to tell someone they’ve been doing a great job or using too many exclamation marks in their emails? Feedback shouldn’t come as an unpleasant surprise once or twice per year.

  • One-way monologue: Reviews often turn into the supervisor’s TED Talk on vague goals while the employee is just waiting for it to end.

  • Anxiety-inducing: The stress of a performance review can rival that induced by a horror-movie marathon.

  • Disconnected from reality: Arbitrary goals often have little to do with what the employee actually does each day.

  • Lack of empathy: Focusing purely on data can sometimes make supervisors forget that they’re dealing with actual humans, not an office printer. People have feelings.

  • Zero fun: Performance reviews are about as enjoyable as a trip to the dentist, without the free toothbrush.

I know what you’re thinking, but don’t panic! In the sections ahead, I’ll share exactly how you can ditch these old-school practices for something that won’t make your self-storage employees want to hide in one of your units in the hopes that no one will find them.

Related:Turnover Is Costly! Learn to Motivate, Engage and Retain Your Self-Storage Team in Today’s Competitive Labor Market

Performance Reviews and the Empathy Factor

If you want your self-storage staff evaluations to be less frightening and more productive, we need to talk about empathy. At the end of the day, you’re reviewing people, not robots. Imagine you're the one being assessed—sweaty palms, racing heartbeat, and you suddenly can’t remember your own job title. Wouldn’t it be nice if your supervisor actually understood how nerve-wracking this whole debacle is? By injecting compassion into the review process, you can:

  • Reduce anxiety and help your self-storage team open up.

  • Understand the real-life challenges your employees face. Maybe someone’s trying to juggle work with a new baby at home.

  • Build trust and encourage people to be honest.

  • Make staff more receptive to feedback and less defensive.

You don’t need to become a full-time therapist to show empathy (though that might make for some interesting company picnics). Here’s how to keep things real:

  • Practice active listening. That means no texting or checking Slack while your employee is pouring their heart out. Eye contact, people!

  • Ask real questions. Don’t assume you know everything. Instead of the classic, “Tell me about your performance,” try, “What challenges have you faced recently?”

  • Recognize emotions. A simple “I know this can be nerve-wracking, but I’m here to support you” can take the tension down several notches.

  • Remember, personal circumstances matter. If your employee’s been juggling family drama or health issues, factor that into your evaluation.

  • Put work in context. Help employees see how their efforts are contributing to the big picture. It isn’t just about ticking boxes. There’s a whole ecosystem here!

  • Offer support. Don’t just drop problems in your self-storage employee’s lap. Work together to come up with solutions.

  • Reflect on yourself. Make sure you’re in a good headspace before evaluating someone else. If you’ve had a rough day, it might not be the best time for performance talks.

With a little empathy, you can turn the evaluation process into something that feels more like a conversation and less like a dental exam.

A Fresh Performance-Review Process

Now it’s time to dig deeper. Here are 10 practical strategies that can help turn your self-storage employee-performance reviews from something dreaded into a more productive and even enjoyable experience.

1. Make it a continuous, ongoing process. Don’t save everything for the periodic review. Regular check-ins throughout the year can ease the pressure and ensure feedback is timely. These can be brief, informal conversations about progress, challenges and wins, so when the formal evaluation comes around, there are no bombshells. Monthly or quarterly chat sessions let employees know how they’re doing in real time, so the formal assessment becomes more of a recap.

2. Set clear expectations, and do it early. Work with your self-storage employee to set clear, actionable goals at the beginning of the evaluation period. This gives them a roadmap to success and removes any ambiguity about what they need to achieve. It also gives supervisors a solid basis for evaluation, reducing those last-minute scrambles to remember who did what. Ultimately, you want to set goals that are SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound). This framework makes the review process feel more objective and less arbitrary.

3. Make sure it’s a two-way conversation. Instead of a one-sided lecture, each review should be a genuine dialogue. Ask open-ended questions like, “How do you feel about your progress this past period?” or “What challenges have you faced of which I might not be aware?” This creates space for employees to share their thoughts and for supervisors to listen and respond.

Also, encourage your self-storage team to assess their own performance before the review. This promotes reflection and can provide valuable insight into their self-perception, which might align (or contrast) with your evaluation.

4. Make it specific and actionable. Whether offering praise or constructive criticism, ground your feedback in specific examples. Instead of “You need to communicate better,” try “In the XYZ project, clearer communication would’ve helped avoid confusion.” If there are areas of improvement, focus on actionable next steps. For example, if an employee struggles with time management, suggest they implement a new project-tracking tool or break larger tasks into smaller milestones.

5. Recognize achievements and strengths. Make time to celebrate successes. Team members need to know their hard work is noticed. Recognition can be a powerful motivator and sets a positive tone for the review. Frame some of the feedback around how an employee’s strengths can be further leveraged. For example, “You’ve done an amazing job with X. Let’s explore how you can take that to the next level.”

6. Incorporate humor and humanity. It’s OK to lighten the mood. Start the review with some light conversation to ease tension. A small joke or casual chat can make the process feel less formal and more comfortable.

You also want to keep it real. Show some vulnerability as a supervisor. If things got tough over the past period, acknowledge that it wasn’t easy for anyone. Let your employee know they aren’t alone in feeling challenged, which can help humanize the experience.

7. Use empathy as the foundation. Performance reviews aren’t just about job performance, they’re about people. Check in on their well-being, personal challenges or external factors that might have impacted their work. Demonstrating empathy can build trust and make the process feel like a supportive conversation rather than a judgement.

I know this one will feel hard: Turn the tables for a moment and ask employees how you can better support them. This shows that you value their opinion and are committed to mutual improvement.

8. Create a culture in which you focus on development. Position the review as a tool for personal and professional growth. Instead of purely grading past performance, shift the conversation toward developing skills and setting new challenges. Create individual plans that highlight areas for growth, specific training opportunities and actionable steps to help the employee continue to thrive. This keeps the conversation future-focused and optimistic.

9. Reduce the formality. Sometimes changing the review environment can make a big difference. If possible, meet over a coffee, in a relaxed setting outside of the office or in a less formal meeting space. This can take the edge off and foster a more open discussion. Allow flexibility in how the review is conducted. Some employees may prefer a structured approach, while others might respond better to a more conversational style.

10. End on a positive note. Even if there’s been some tough feedback, end the review with positive reinforcement. Highlight the potential you see in the employee and express confidence in their ability to succeed moving forward. Close the conversation by looking ahead. What exciting projects or opportunities are on the horizon? This gives then something to look forward to, beyond just the immediate feedback.

While performance reviews will likely never be a cause for celebration, they don’t have to be a total downer. Treat them as an opportunity to connect with your self-storage employees, celebrate their successes and identify where improvements can be made.

Michael Baillargeon is chief operating officer for Hearthfire Holdings, a private-equity firm that specializes in acquiring and operating self-storage facilities. He has more than two decades of industry leadership experience, with wide-ranging responsibilities that have included operational management as well as third-party asset management. For more information, call 267.225.4373 or email [email protected].

About the Author

Michael Baillargeon

Chief Operating Officer, Hearthfire Holdings

Michael Baillargeon is chief operating officer for Hearthfire Holdings, a private-equity firm specializing in acquiring and operating self-storage. He has more than two decades of industry leadership experience, with wide-ranging responsibilities that have included operational management as well as third-party and asset management. 

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