I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve seen this happen.
A manager is frustrated because an employee isn’t meeting expectations.
The employee is frustrated because they thought they were.
Both are convinced the problem is on the other side of the conversation.
The manager thinks:
“I already explained that.”
The employee thinks:
“I thought that’s what you wanted.”
Neither person is lying.
Neither person has bad intentions.
Both are acting on what they believe to be true.
And that’s where things get interesting.
The problem isn’t that the manager communicated.
The problem is assuming the employee understood.
There’s a difference.
And that difference creates more organizational problems than most leaders realize.
Because the assumptions don’t feel like assumptions.
They feel like certainty.
And once certainty arrives, curiosity tends to leave.
When curiosity leaves, understanding usually goes with it.