“Of course I don’t look busy.  I did it right the first time.”

One of easiest ways to improve your time management in a group context is to become a pro at expectations management.   It’s exactly what it sounds like: everyone is clear on what to expect from the other, and what the other expects from them.

After all, time management boils down to prioritizing and planning.  We may take for granted that our team knows exactly what we mean, or that they will figure it out for themselves (after all, that’s what they are paid for, right?).  Some people want their staff to be ultra-autonomous, but still act as an extension of the manager.  That sounds like quite a feat to me.

As I told a client last summer and another client just last week, “when your boss says ’do what you think is best’, they often really mean ‘know what I would think is best, and do that’”.  This is neither good nor bad – it’s reality.  The people who can squeeze the expectations out of their leaders are often the ones  who get the job done right the first time.

• If it’s not clear why intelligent, skilled employees are not delivering results on time, or
• deliverables dont’ turn out the way you want the first time, or
• if you don’t know how or where to begin to improve your team’s productivity through expectations management, just give me a call and ask.  It’s my job to help!