Be careful to distinguish between clever-sounding aphorisms and practical leadership advice - there is little if any overlap

“Expect great things from your people and they will beat your expectations”

We have been fed this bromide for years by leadership gurus through books, keynotes, seminars and other platforms.

Bromides are pithy statements that sound true but grossly oversimplify complex reality; so you shouldn’t expect this one to be a magic bullet for the motivation and delegation challenges you face with your team.

In fact, this is applicable only to one category of people - those who are highly engaged and highly competent. These are people who need little or no hand-holding and hate being told what to do. 

You can help these highly engaged-highly competent folk deliver their best by setting high expectations and getting out of their way.

Of course, since the accountability is still yours, it is prudent to have an occasional light check-in to ensure they are on track to deliver what you expect by the time you expect it.

What about others on your team? Why does this advice not apply to them?

Let's look at another group - those who are highly competent but low on engagement, if not actively disengaged. Unless you are naive, there is no reason to expect them to deliver what you want, just because you asked for it. 

As experienced managers know, this is a group you monitor very closely, have the most difficult conversations with, and who stretch your consequence management skills.

In the short-term you manage with frequent check-ins, and try to coach them to change their attitude. And if they prove not coachable, they have to be managed out.

A third group comprises those who are low on both engagement and competence. These are the people who are the least productive and yet take up most of your time.

They need close supervision and hand-holding - since you have to provide detailed directions, and at the same time check-in constantly to make sure they are doing what they agreed to do.

The last group of people are those who are high on engagement but are not fully competent - as yet. These may be new joiners or people who have moved into new roles within the organisation. 

Here too, frequent check-ins are required - but the emphasis is on whether they are picking the right skills and applying them correctly to the task at hand.

You can delegate the task of coaching for skills to your star performers - people in the high skill/ high competence group. This not reduces your burden, it also serves to develop them for their next move.

However, coaching for attitude is best done by you, or in partnership with a professional coach.

The long and short of it is: be careful to distinguish between clever-sounding aphorisms and practical advice - there is little if any overlap.

What are some other leadership aphorisms you've heard, and how useful or practical have you found them?