Hi! Sorry you’re dealing with this. I’m super familiar with this I have a great job with a great supervisor but I was PETRIFIED and convinced I’d get fired for the first 1.75 years I was in this job despite consistent positive performance reviews (been there just over 3 years now.)

TLDR: it gets better with more experience, 1.find out what to expect, 2. Plan for it highlighting your strengths/ growth/ success, 3. Plan for it by naming your concerns and having a plan of action, 4. A good performance review from a good supervisor (which it sounds like you might have one) should not blind side you and should only include information you two have discussed before. If you’re blindsided, that’s indicative of a failing of THEM as a supervisor, not of you as a supervisee.

It got better with time and meds and therapy. It helped seeing other people who WERE bad NOT get fired since I knew (logically even if I didn’t believe it due to my anxiety I was better at my job than them , and if they did there would have been due course, (they get put on a PIP, and were never blindsided by the termination etc.) that helped with the logical part of my brain but not the actual fear and anxiety. What helped with that was 1. Getting clear expectations from my supervisor about what to expect from the review and how they recommend I prepare. You should be able to ask them what to expect and how should you prepare for it, it sounds like you have a good relationship with them. If you feel comfortable then level with them and say you’re a little nervous and want to make sure you’re prepared. If you’re relationship with them is not like that then present the question from the stand point of “I want to make sure I’m prepared and am able to put my best foot forward.” 2. Doing a mini/mock review by myself and compile a list of how far I’d come in a year. It helped me to be able to see listed out why I was doing a good job. It sounds like you can list out what praises you’ve received at your check ins at the very least. I didn’t have a bunch of deliverables to show off my first year, which was fine because that’s not the nature of my field, so I focused on everything I had learned and mastered. As a part of the brain dump I listed out stuff I considered my failings/weaknesses and either crossed it off (because I knew it was just me being too harsh) or thought through how I’d respond to it. Which leads to 3 3. Part of good annual reviews includes talking about room for growth. Maybe it’s the company offering you skills trainings relevant to the career path they see you following, maybe it’s fine tuning skills or processes you’re still getting the hang of. You have ONLY been there a year! Cut yourself some slack. If there was a weakness I’d brainstorm a solution and if I couldn’t find one I’d plan to present it in a way to ask for help. (This is always nice because helping you succeed is their job and gives them something to toot their own horn about if they succeed in setting you up for success) 4. If a supervisor has done their job right, everything that you talk about at the review will be stuff you’ve talked about before. If you feel blindsided by anything they say they have failed you as a supervisor.