I think reviews are very useful, done properly. I also think most bosses don't know how to do them and hate doing them. A couple of things to remember...



You are allowed to add your input. If you don't agree with something that is said, you can write your comment (i.e. this is the first time I have been notified of this problem) in BEFORE you sign it.



If you want goals, tell your boss! Ask for the feedback on what new skills they think you should be acquiring or tell him/her what you plan to do. Come up with a list of suggestions to be considered (i.e. take one CEU credit class this year, learn shorthand, develop a new filing system, WHATEVER!!!). Best type of goal though is one that could be broken down into steps that you can show progress on during the year.



Keep your boss posted of what you are doing. In a prior job, I would issue a short report every Friday to my manager. I stated here's what I worked on this week (overall view of course), here's what I plan to work on next week, here's my progress toward my short term goal (i.e. when I was pursuing a certification I would advise that I had read "x" book and written a review of it for xyz.com website).



The advantage of these reports is that often our bosses have NO CLUE of what we do (partially because it is our job to keep things from coming to their attention) and therefore they don't realize the full scope of what we are responsible for. They are also useful for US, because sometimes our weeks are composed of 10 minute projects and it feels like we did nothing all week. The report shows the cumulative work. I pull out my reports at the end of the year and use them to help me write my self-performance evaluation.



Also, whenever I receive compliments from co-workers, I learned long ago to say "Thank you, that is so kind of you to notice. Would you mind putting that in an email to me and cc: my boss?" People often do it!!! I print these out and include them in my success portfolio - which I also bring to my review).



Marie