What to Write When You Have Nothing to Say in a Peer Review
Staring at a blank peer review form with no idea what to write? You're not alone - and you probably have more to say than you think.
We've all been there. The peer review deadline is looming, the form is open in your browser, and your mind is completely blank. You scroll through the questions, think "I mean, they seem... fine?" and start wondering if "No feedback at this time" is a valid answer.
It isn't. But the good news is that feeling like you have nothing to say almost never means you actually have nothing to say. It usually means you're not sure where to start.
This post will help you find something worth writing specific, honest, and actually useful, even when you're starting from zero.
Why People Get Stuck
Before jumping to solutions, it helps to know why the blank page problem happens in the first place. Most people freeze for one of a few reasons:
They don't work closely with the person and can't think of concrete examples. The person is perfectly fine not brilliant, not difficult, and "fine" feels impossible to write about. They have a small criticism but don't want to damage the relationship over it. The review form is vague and abstract, which makes it hard to translate impressions into words.
None of these are signs that you have nothing to contribute. They're signs you need a slightly different approach.
Start Small: One Moment Is Enough
The most common mistake is trying to assess someone's entire year at once. That's overwhelming, and it's why your mind goes blank.
Instead, shrink the problem. Think about one meeting, one project handoff, one Slack thread. Ask yourself:
What did this person do that made your work easier (or harder)? When did they step up, or when did something fall through? How do they usually show up in collaborative situations?
Even a single clear example, described well, is worth more than a paragraph of vague generalisations. You don't need ten memories. You need one good one.
Use a Framework So You're Not Writing from Scratch
If you're unsure how to turn an observation into feedback, structured frameworks take a lot of the guesswork out.
The SBI Model (Situation, Behaviour, Impact)
This is the gold standard for workplace feedback, and it's popular for a reason. It keeps your comments factual and focused on observable actions rather than personality.
Situation : When and where did this happen? Behaviour : What did the person actually do? Impact : What effect did it have on you, the team, or the project?
For example, instead of writing "good communicator," you might write: "During the Q3 planning meeting, they flagged a dependency we'd all missed (Situation), walked the group through the risk clearly (Behaviour), and it meant we avoided a delay that would have affected the launch (Impact)."
That's a real, useful review. And it came from one meeting.
Describe, Evaluate, Suggest
Another option, especially for broader competency questions, is to describe what you've observed, evaluate how well it meets expectations, and suggest what a stronger version might look like.
This works well when the form asks something like "How does this person handle communication?" and you're not sure where to start.
Four Tricky Scenarios (and How to Handle Each)
You barely work with them
Be honest about that. Say your interactions have been limited, and focus only on what you've actually seen, whether that be responsiveness to emails, how they show up in shared meetings, or how they handle handoffs. You don't need to assess what you haven't witnessed.
Everything is "fine" but unremarkable
Here's a perspective shift that might help: reliability is underrated. If someone consistently meets deadlines, stays calm under pressure, and is easy to work with, that's genuinely worth naming. Just be specific about it. "Always delivers on time" lands better than "does a good job."
You have one nagging issue in an otherwise positive picture
This is the scenario that makes people avoid writing anything at all, which is a shame. Acknowledge the strengths first, and mean it, then use SBI to frame the issue as a behaviour with an impact, not a character flaw. Pair it with a practical suggestion. Done well, this kind of review is some of the most valuable feedback a person can receive.
Your experience has been mostly negative
Be honest, be specific, and focus on behaviours and their impact rather than judgements about the person. Reviews exist to help people grow, which means surfacing real problems is part of the job. Vague or softened feedback that hides a genuine issue doesn't serve anyone.
Useful Phrases to Adapt
Sometimes you just need a starting point. Here are a few examples you can borrow and personalise:
When your contact has been limited: "In the project meetings we've shared, they've been well prepared and responsive to questions. Based on those interactions, they come across as reliable and easy to collaborate with."
When someone is steady and consistent: "Delivers work to a consistent standard and meets deadlines reliably, which makes coordination much easier for the rest of the team."
When you need to raise something constructively: "In team discussions, key points sometimes get lost because they're embedded in longer explanations. A brief summary at the end of each point could help make sure the main message lands."
When strengths are the main story: "Regularly shares knowledge with newer team members, which has visibly shortened their ramp up time and reduced the load on others."
A Quick Checklist Before You Submit
Before hitting send, run through these:
Have you been honest about how much (or how little) you've worked with this person? Is there at least one specific behaviour and its impact? Have you kept the tone professional and avoided anything that sounds like a personal attack? If you've raised a concern, does it include a practical suggestion?
If you can tick most of those, your review is doing its job, even if it's short.
One More Thing: AI Can Help You Get Started
One approach worth mentioning, especially for people who struggle with the writing itself, is using AI assisted tools to help structure your thoughts and overcome writer's block. That doesn't mean copying generic phrases wholesale. It means using smart prompts or outputs specialised AI tools as scaffolding, then filling them in with your own real observations. The result is still your feedback; the AI just helps you get unstuck.
This is something we believe in at Perform Review. If you're looking for a tool that makes peer and self assessments easier without sacrificing quality, Perform Review uses AI assistance to help you write professional, specific, and genuinely useful feedback whether you're a seasoned reviewer or staring at a blank form wondering where to start.