At dinner two nights ago, our kids took sips of their milk and said almost simultaneously, “This doesn’t taste right.” So I jumped up, went to the refrigerator, looked at the plastic container and proclaimed, “The ‘sell by’ date says it’s still good; must be your taste buds.” My wife, meanwhile, had a different attitude about this situation. She opened the other gallon purchased the same day and poured the kids new glasses. Sure enough, that milk was bad, too. Must have come from the same cow.
Our house – which is one year older than the 12 we’ve lived in it – is starting to have some big things go sour as well. By month’s end we’ll have replaced one air conditioning unit, two hot water heaters and three faucets. Like the spoiled milk, my thought is ‘How did they all know to go bad at the same time?’
In business, so much of success is about hitting expected dates of completion. Whether it’s meeting the deadline your boss asked for that spreadsheet, or delivering a product on the day you promised a customer, it’s imperative to pay close attention to the calendar. Unfortunately, one of the biggest challenges my coaching clients typically face is the ability to get their team members to finish things on time.
The biggest reason for this is these leaders are better at abdicating than delegating. They hand off assignments, set off to extinguish the next fire and forget the essential piece of following up to ensure things progress on a steady schedule. Then on the due date, they pick up the phone and ask where it is. Usually, a quiet voice on the other end says, “Yes, I’m still working on that.” What follows is a hurried race for the employee to remember exactly what their boss wanted and quickly reprioritize his own ‘to do’ list.
A better approach is for you, as leader, to set firm deadlines upfront including ‘check-in’ dates where your direct reports share progress and solicit guidance and feedback from you. This tweak in your approach eliminates last-minute surprises, ensures things finish as planned, and keeps you from ending up with a sour taste in your mouth.
