Superpowers don't scale
Someone missed another deadline, while they worked on less important things. Something from Tuesday’s meeting was already forgotten by Thursday. What they created doesn’t seem connected to what you asked for. And they didn’t even refer to what you gave them to get the job done.
This usually leaves you wondering, “Why don’t they just know what to do?” But it’s not them, it’s you.
You have super powers
- You hear something once in a meeting, and then when working on that task the memory of what was required is just there in your head.
- When you move onto the next task, you just know what the next most important thing is to get done.
- You just know what is needed to get something done and how to find it.
- When you see a need, the solution and steps to achieve it instantly appear in your head. They’re obvious to you in a way that makes it seem like communicating them would be patronising.
Your trouble comes from projecting those abilities onto your employees.
Why your staff are different
If you didn’t have all of these natural skills, would you be the founder or employer in your situation? Or by lacking any of these skills are you more likely to be an employee?
Many people who are employees go on to start their own businesses and do a great job of running them. And for some people, being an employee fits the other constraints of their life better. So this is not universally true. But many employees just don’t have your skill set. They have other incredibly valuable skills, just not this set.
Give staff the tools to perform as you need them to
You are responsible for the environment your staff work in and the tools they have to support that work. Understanding that they need tools to achieve what you do instinctively is critical to getting the outcomes you expect from them.
The Complete Business Management Suite has been designed to support people like you who need to see at a glance that everything is running smoothly. It is also designed for employees that need these tools to meet your expectations.
Here’s the version of this post from your employee’s perspective. Why your employer expects you to read their mind