You might think you’re a dream to work with. After all, you’re in your head all day, so you know your intentions and beliefs and I’m sure they’re all sound and honorable. The problem is, no one else is in there with you. Even your closest allies, those who know you inside and out are sideswiped by your actions sometimes.
Why?
Because you’re not nearly as clear as you think you are. You didn’t come with a user’s guide, so you’re kind of hard to figure out.
What if you changed that? What if you sat down individually with the people who are important to you and you gave them a cheat sheet into your work style?
I challenge you to create a one-page user’s guide that would give the people who work with you a fighting chance of getting it right.
It might include things like; what you value, your self acknowledged strengths and weaknesses, and if you’re being honest, your idiosyncrasies. Maybe include how you make decisions, or how people should fess up to you if they make a mistake. Documenting your expectations takes away ambiguity and whim; two things leaders should travel without.
Highlight topics that give the people you work with insight into you. It’s not a resume or a brag sheet. It’s a page of instructions and clues to help ensure better results. Truthfully, it’s less about the guide and more about the conversations you have around the guide … but build a guide anyway, it will improve your self-awareness and raise the caliber of conversation you have with others.
Also published on Medium.