Welcome to the Pursue You Podcast, where we are empowering you to continually reflect, design and pursue who you were created to be so you can give the gift of your best self to your family, community, and business!
Today we are talking about goals. One thing I am learning as I get older is how different we all are. We have different backgrounds, experiences, childhoods. It is our differences that make the world go round. But, differences in perspectives and opinions can make it difficult for us to understand one another. Today we will discuss how we navigate these differences in our businesses by setting clear and concise expectations.
[5:16] I discuss setting, or clarifying, expectations. We have to start with the framework of truly understanding how different we all truly are. We set expectations to understand each other better, meaning we can work together better, create more, help more and provide more value to our business, allowing it to flourish.
Get the FREE downloadable outline we use: Expectations Conversation
[7:02] I share our Expectations Conversation exercise we use when onboarding new team members or employees. These are not casual questions, which is why they can make such an impact! The meeting can range from 20 minutes to an hour to ensure you are getting the most out of the meeting. It is a set of questions broken into 6 parts. It will allow you and your team member to get clear on the expectations of one another.
[9:33] Honesty Expectations is the first section. The question: “On a scale of 1-10, how honest do you want me to be with you?” The follow up question: “Can you give me an example of when someone was extremely honest with you, or a 10.” Put similarly, “What does a 10 look like for you?” I share an example in my business world where a difference in expectations created a challenging situation on my team.
[14:24] Section 2 answers the question “How does someone win or lose with you?” – the Win/Lose Expectation. Try to listen as much as possible, avoid interrupting or disrupting the way they are responding. Give him or her the floor and utilize silence. I share how my team members can win and lose with me.
[18:08] Section 3: Sensitive Issues Expectations. For example, let’s say you hire someone and a few months in, you learn this employee has bad body odor. How do you handle it? Have the conversation early on and ASK! The question: “If a sensitive issue should arise, how would you like me to address it with you?” I share some examples. Sensitive issues in my world are usually handled best after I give myself 24 hours to think about it (we call it the “24 Hour Rule.”)
[22:45] The 4th and 5th sections are all about job standards and expectations. Conversations include things like “This is what you are responsible for,” ”what excites you most about the position?” I share about the 30/60/90 model in section 5. It is all about milestones and results driven metrics to help determine what success will look like after 30 days, 60 days and 90 days. How will they know if they are winning and how will they know if they are off course?
[25:37] The six section is the final piece to this exercise: “Here is what you can expect for Accountability.” We have made it this far, this is how it works. It is not aggressive, it is not mean, it is CLEAR. Clear is kind. Gary Keller says, “Sometimes you are losing so slowly, you think you are actually winning.” Use this section as a time to set expectations on what accountability looks like.
Using this process with a new hire (or an old hire) leaves me feeling so connected to my team member. The more connected you are, the better the results and enjoy the process. “You are fearfully and wonderfully made.” (Psalms 139, Verse 14). And so is every other person around you. We are all different and unique. Take the time to understand one another.
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