Manage by Agreement, Not Expectation

Manage by Agreement, Not Expectation

Most advisors face one or both of these challenges as their business grows:

(1) Getting in front of enough qualified prospects; and

(2) Building and working with a team that can support their growth

While many of the the advisors and agents who have reached out to me over the years have been looking for help with the first of these, more and more I find myself talking with advisors who have more business than they can handle and can’t get production out of their assistant or team. ?

They end up disappointed and doing the work that the assistant should be doing. Applications are not prepared, money isn’t moved and tasks like filing a Change of Beneficiary form get pushed off until they’re 5 weeks behind.?

If you have business opportunities that are on hold because you’re doing the paperwork, followup, appointment-setting with existing clients, marketing, or anything else that could be done by someone else, you’re depriving yourself of the opportunity to grow your business.

But how do you delegate these other tasks in a way that ensures they will be done right and on time?

Stop expecting and being disappointed. Make clear agreements instead.

Management by expectation will almost always lead to disappointment.?If you’re expecting that a task will be given priority but your assistant doesn’t know that, your expectation that they would understand the urgency of this task and give it priority will usually result in disappointment.

Often, I’ll hear an advisor say, “It’s just common sense that this needed to be done first (or submitted somewhere, or whatever).”?My usual reply is that there is no such thing as common sense.?Your sense may have been that this item should have been given priority.?Their sense was that they already had priority tasks and this just was meant to be added to the pile.

When you assign something to an assistant, take these steps:

1. Explain what you want, when you want it by, and when and how you want progress reported to you.

2. Ask what might be in the way of that happening.

3. Ask if there’s anything they need to complete the task as explained, including anything they need from you.

4. Ask if they will agree to the terms of the assignment.

When you have an expectation, there can be reasons that what you wanted doesn’t come in the time frame and in the form in which you wanted it.?When there’s an explicit agreement, however, failure to give you what you want is a breach of that agreement.?It rises to a much higher level of importance to your team and is more likely to be done in the way—and in the timeframe—you were hoping for. ?

You’ll also want to calendar your own follow up so that the task doesn’t fall through the cracks. And it may help you to have your assistant email you to confirm the details of the assignment.?

I can help you perfect your systems and get more out of your team. Message me and we'll set up a conversation.

Manage by Agreement, not Expectation, and keep REACHING...

要查看或添加评论,请登录

Sandy Schussel的更多文章

  • Make One Tiny Change

    Make One Tiny Change

    We often underestimate the power of tiny changes. Transformation—for yourself or for your business—requires drastic…

  • Who Are Your Ideal Clients and What Do They Really Want?

    Who Are Your Ideal Clients and What Do They Really Want?

    A lot of my work with advisors is about finding an “ideal client”—a target, a niche—for their marketing. An ideal…

  • The Stress Nearly Killed Me

    The Stress Nearly Killed Me

    Before I came into the financial services/insurance field, my failure to understand the importance of choosing a…

    3 条评论
  • The Power of Being Special

    The Power of Being Special

    Many advisors come to me after trying everything they can think of to get their stagnant business growing again. They…

    3 条评论
  • You Don't Need More Training or Motivation

    You Don't Need More Training or Motivation

    You don’t need more training, and you don’t need motivation or inspiration. You need measurable results.

  • The "Dental" Model For Your Financial or Insurance Business?

    The "Dental" Model For Your Financial or Insurance Business?

    In a recent article, advisor Katherine Vesseness talked about implementing the “dental” model in her financial…

    3 条评论
  • To Attract Clients...BE DIFFERENT!

    To Attract Clients...BE DIFFERENT!

    One of my coaching colleagues, Ann DuPlessis, was introduced last week by her 15-year-old son to a popular and…

  • Washing Socks

    Washing Socks

    I’ve often heard advisors complain about the long hours they work. For some, all those hours are being well-compensated.

  • Work Smarter, Not Harder?

    Work Smarter, Not Harder?

    How many times have you heard some time-management “Guru” say the words above? If you’re like most people, when you…

    2 条评论
  • Start. And Stop Stopping.

    Start. And Stop Stopping.

    Advisors who aren’t finding the success they want and aren’t reaching their goals for the year, if they have any…

社区洞察

其他会员也浏览了