Confirm Goals & Check Those Assumptions

When collaborating or leading, we may opt for a task or a goal oriented approach. Though no one asked for my opinion, I’ll share a preference for goal orientation, as this approach enables teammates to learn, innovate, and optimize in a way they find most rewarding.

With proper support, goal orientation signals confidence, suggesting, “I trust you to craft the way forward. And heck, your way will likely be way better than the way I had imagined!”

The individual steps do not matter so much.

What matters is the achievement of the agreed upon goal.

Of course, there is risk in assuming all parties define the goal identically. We serve ourselves well by checking assumptions and confirming goals together.

For instance, my partner nodded toward the backyard last week, “The yard folks are a bit behind schedule. Can you give them a ring and see when they'll be here?”

“Oh, I spoke with them last week and they're short staffed. I can deal with the leaves.”

And though I assumed my track record (see 1/30/24) might have suggested intent, I did not achieve the goal my partner had imagined. Now, in this instance, my erroneous goal resulted in some pleasantness, however the lessons are once more learned.

Check assumptions.

And when opting for goal orientation, define and agree upon your goal.