How to manage team expectations

Managing team expectations and aligning goals comes down to a few things:

• Establish clear communication and transparency: Leila Hormozi finds that leaders do better when they are upfront about roles, such as the difference between being a buddy and a boss, and set clear parameters so things do not get confusing as the team grows 1.
• Use a personal operating manual: Lorraine K. Lee suggests creating a personal operating manual, or readme, that spells out your working hours, communication style, and feedback preferences, so the team knows how to work with you and surprises are kept to a minimum 2.
• Focus on clarity over popularity: Giving clear direction during uncertain times is usually more valuable to a team than trying to offer quick reassurance.
• Implement structured metrics: Tim Ferriss points to putting quality-assurance measures, KPIs, and tracking in place, alongside clear quotas and metrics, so delegated work gets executed properly 3.
• Collaborate on the definition of success: Involve the team in defining what a win looks like, and play those goals back to confirm everyone understands them the same way.