Before you can give an Italian colleague meaningful feedback, you need to have earned the standing to do so. This standing comes from the quality of your relationship, your demonstrated expertise, or your recognized authority. Without it, your feedback—no matter how accurate—will be experienced as an intrusion rather than useful input. Italians process evaluative information through the lens of “who is telling me this?” before considering the content itself.
Invest in the relationship first. Demonstrate that you understand their work. Show genuine engagement over time. Once you have established that relational foundation, your evaluative input becomes receivable and genuinely valued. Skip this step, and even the most helpful feedback will be deflected or resented—not because of what you said but because you had not yet earned the right to say it.
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