Feedback is an invaluable tool that helps both individuals and teams reach their full potential. To make feedback truly effective and inspiring, it is useful to follow four clear steps based on the argument model. Argument-based feedback improves the quality of teamwork and helps build trust within teams.

If, as a leader, you find that decisions in your team are made hastily or that costly mistakes emerge later, it’s worth examining the decision-making process from the outset.

The foundation of effective argumentative communication lies in justifying your viewpoints with both logic and evidence. While checking whether a fact is true or false is usually straightforward, evaluating whether the reasoning behind a claim actually holds up is often more challenging.

From time to time, most of us feel the desire to do something differently at work: to be a more confident speaker, a more reasoned leader, or simply to approach things in a new way. Even when we manage to gather enough courage, knowledge, or skills, attempts at change can quickly be shut down by teammates’ reactions, pushing us back into old routines. This happened in one of my teams, where a colleague’s attempt to lead meetings in a more substantive way was met with a question about their level of intoxication.

Using argumentation skills as an example, here are four things to keep in mind when trying to introduce change in a work environment.

When businesses invest in team-building activities—whether it’s climbing, jumping, meditating, or sculpting—the goal is usually to improve collaboration in the workplace. While a team that communicates effortlessly is beneficial, a team that agrees on everything can actually be a liability.