Want More Engaged and Productive Employees? Set Clear Expectations.

Cathie Leimbach • December 14, 2021

Remember when you had a coach, teacher, mentor, parent, friend who believed in you 100%? Their total belief and high expectations for what you could do enabled you to perform better than you imagined, consistently and confidently.

 

Believing in people lifts them up. Cheering on your employees, giving them the support they need to grow, and the "can do it" message will increase productivity and employee engagement. 

 

Interestingly, a recent Harvard Business study found that 69% of managers reported being uncomfortable communicating with their employees, and more than one-third were uncomfortable giving direct feedback.

 

Management expert, Ken Blanchard, taught the importance of catching people doing things right. Rather than just saying "thanks," be specific about the contributions your employee or team made. And guess what? You will get a lot more of precisely what you want as a manager.

 

Your employees will always move towards someone who encourages and away from anyone who diminishes them. Stephen Covey taught that making deposits into your employees' emotional and professional well-being builds trust and increases performance. 

 

Effective managers empower their teams by pointing out their strengths and partnering together to develop their strengths and opportunities for growth. Imagine how your employees will feel when they feel you believe in them and are enthusiastically supported. Here are some best practices:

  • Connect your "why" to your employee's "Why".  Your employees need to know why what they do matters. More importantly, they need to find a sense of purpose in your organization's mission. Treat your employees like they make a difference, and they will.
  • Be clear. Set clear expectations and goals. Meet with each of your direct reports periodically to make sure they understand what "good performance" is. And put it in writing so that it is easy to keep track of what has or hasn't been communicated.
  • Co-Create Goals. Don't dictate. Co-creating goals and expectations will create higher buy-in and more significant accountability. Having a conversation with each of your employees will empower and support them to meet and exceed expectations.  
  • Provide C.A.R.E feedback. Continuous. Accessible. Regular. Empathetic. Schedule regular meetings continually. Be responsive, approachable, and empathetic. You have a unique opportunity to unleash the most significant contributions of others.
  • Get out of their way. Develop agreed-to expectations with each employee. Give them the support they need. And then let them do their thing. Trust that they can solve the problem, find the solution, take care of the customer, innovate and inspire other team members. 

 

As managers, you can make huge deposits into your employees' confidence and performance. Be the coach and mentor that helps your team members thrive and grow to do the very best they can. The result? Higher performance and higher engagement. 

Speaking Up Is Not Defiance. It's Duty.

By Cathie Leimbach • June 23, 2026
Most leaders say they want employees to speak up. They want people who spot risks, question assumptions, and help the organization make better decisions. Yet many employees hesitate to do exactly that. Why? Because leaders often respond to speaking up as if the speaker is complaining, criticizing or resisting. When people fear being viewed as difficult, they stop sharing what they see. The organization loses valuable information, ideas, and perspectives. A recent McKinsey article found that teams with high psychological safety are two to three times more likely to generate breakthrough ideas. When people feel safe speaking up, better thinking follows. The best leaders understand a simple truth: Speaking up is not defiance. It's duty. When employees question assumptions, raise concerns, or offer a different perspective, they are helping the team avoid blind spots and make stronger decisions. That's why effective leaders don't merely tolerate speaking up—they invite it. They ask: What are we not seeing? What assumptions are we making? Who might see this differently? What information are we missing? Just as importantly, they respond with curiosity instead of defensiveness. They thank people for expressing their perspective. They explain how input influenced decisions. They make speaking up safe. Because organizations don't improve when everyone agrees. They improve when people feel responsible for helping the team see what others may have missed. In healthy organizations, speaking up isn't rebellion. It's responsibility. It's duty. Leadership Reflection Think about your last leadership team meeting. Did people simply agree? Or did someone help the team see something it otherwise would have missed? Download 5 Questions That Surface Better Thinking and make speaking up a productive part of how your team thinks, decides, and performs.

Put Your Brain in Gear When Using AI

By Cathie Leimbach • June 16, 2026
Artificial Intelligence is becoming a powerful workplace tool. It can summarize information, analyze data, draft content, and generate ideas in seconds. But there is a growing risk leaders need to recognize: AI can sound convincing even when it is wrong. In an article by Erica Dhawan, she describes a legal case where attorneys used ChatGPT to help prepare a court filing. The brief looked professional, the reasoning seemed logical, and the citations appeared legitimate. There was only one problem: several of the cited cases did not exist. The AI had fabricated them. The danger wasn't carelessness. It was trust. Because the information was presented clearly, confidently, and professionally, nobody stopped to question it. Psychologists call this the "fluency heuristic"—our tendency to assume information is accurate when it is easy to process and sounds credible. As leaders, we cannot allow polished answers to replace critical thinking. When you find yourself thinking, "This is too good to be true," put your brain in gear. Dig deeper. Investigate. Verify the facts. Ask what assumptions were made, what information might be missing, and what evidence supports the conclusion. AI can be an incredible assistant. It should never become a substitute for judgment. The smooth answer is not always the wrong one—but it is often the one that deserves the most scrutiny. Before You Act, Verify. The biggest risk with AI isn't bad information. It's believable information that's wrong. That's why we created the AI Verification Checklist for Leaders —a simple 5-minute tool designed to help leaders challenge assumptions, identify missing information, verify conclusions, and make better decisions before acting on AI-generated recommendations. Download the free AI Verification Checklist for Leaders and start asking better questions before making important decisions.