How to Avoid Disappointment

Everyone has likely experienced disappointment in their lives at one time or another. As a child, a parent might have caused disappointment by not taking an outing to the park after they promised they would. A significant other might have caused disappointment by breaking a promise. A friend might have caused disappointment by not showing up to a special event. No one likes how it feels to be disappointed and no leader would want to cause a team member or client to feel disappointment either.
Disappointment occurs when reality does not meet expectations. Disappointment in the professional setting is usually caused by performance that is lower than expected, breaches of contract, missed deadlines, or a lack of satisfaction overall. It can lead to low team morale, employee attrition, loss of revenue, and loss of clients. How can a leader minimize or even eliminate disappointment among their team and their clients? Here are a few strategies for avoiding disappointment:

1. Set goals collaboratively. Whether working with a team member or client, collaborate to establish goals to ensure that they are reasonable and are directly related to expected outcomes.  When goals are agreed upon, meeting those stated goals will ensure satisfaction.
2. Communicate clearly. Disappointment is almost guaranteed when expectations are unstated. It is difficult to meet expectations that no one knows exist! Communicate clearly and effectively with team members and clients to learn about their expectations.
3. Manage expectations. If a team member or client’s expectations are unreasonable, be upfront about it. Impossible compensation expectations, timelines, or work products lead directly to disappointment. Be clear about what is possible and what is not in the beginning.
4. Under promise and over deliver. It is much better to provide more than what was expected than to have to apologize for not being able to deliver what was promised. Be mindful not to be overly optimistic when establishing timelines, financial estimates, and more. It is better to deliver early or offer cash back or a bonus later than to admit that overly ambitious promises cannot be kept.
5. Put it in writing. Protect the interests of all by documenting expectations or agreements in writing. This can be in the form of informal notes for an internal meeting or formal documentation with a client, such as a contract or statement of work. These documents can serve as a reference to manage expectations and to verify that the outcome meets the expectations and goals that were originally agreed upon.
6. Keep your word. Self-discipline has been described as keeping your word after the mood in which the commitment was made has passed. Excitement and motivation may wane, but it is important to maintain zeal and urgency to deliver on what was promised. Team members and clients value a leader that does what they say they will do, especially without constant reminders or prodding.

To be clear, disappointment happens, even with the best strategies and intentions. However, leaders have significant control over managing disappointment with their team members and clients. Avoiding disappointment improves work culture, creates positive internal and external reputations for the leader and the team, and leads to greater employee satisfaction and company revenue.
If you are dealing with disappointment as a leader, check out this blog post here.