Assumptions - the pitfall of every manager

Assumptions. We make assumptions multiple times per day, sometimes without even realising it. However, the consequences can be from almost none to BIG, especially if the assumptions relate to our work and the teams we lead. So, you should be very careful when you enter the “assumption zone”.

Why might an assumption be bad for you?

I’ve seen and made many assumptions in my professional life. Sometimes this was painless, while the consequences have been harmful at other times. It is a harsh lesson every leader and manager learns sooner or later.

I’ve seen people assume how their product will be used in my practice. They believed that users would have sufficient knowledge in a specific area, which was completely wrong. In the end, the product, which had already been built, had to be reworked for months. That assumption led to inefficiency.

I personally made wrong assumptions in the past. In one such case, I ASSUMED that my peers - engineering managers - see the same problems I am seeing just because we call them the same way. We’ve seen different issues and very different solutions to them, so we all assumed different things. Each of us tried to push for his/her solution without understanding the real problems of the others.

In most cases, assumptions set expectations of or from people but are never communicated. So you might assume you’ll receive a salary increase from your boss, оr promotion, or a new job. I’ve seen assumptions causing a lot of confusion in discussions, especially in times of significant changes. Assumptions are very much related to the context and the topic I recently wrote about: The multiverse in people management.

My manager and mentor taught me a long time ago that assumptions are a pitfall for managers. You might assume that others see the same issues or that you understand why they do something, but often these assumptions are not correct - and that causes frustration, confusion, and even bad decisions could be taken based on this. 

So, how can we avoid falling into the pitfall of the assumptions?

Set expectations in others

It is essential to set the right expectations in people and provide the context. The setting, for example, “this is an easy problem to solve”, doesn’t mean “I will solve this quickly for you” because you might have many other things to do, which are more important and urgent. This is valid for various examples from pure product development through even annual salary adjustments or performance reviews. Suppose we keep the information on how things work for ourselves. In that case, we should accept that others would build their expectations set on assumptions. Assumptions that different factors play a role or that completing certain tasks is enough for high-performance review. So always try to set the right expectations if the topic is sensitive or you see that the other party in this activity shows signs of wrong expectations and making assumptions. Try to notice early signs. You could find the signs in what people say or do, how they approach questions, problems, tasks. If a topic might become sensible or you see it as important and want to minimise the risk of things going wrong, do the first step and proactively try to guide the situation with proper expectations and minimise the room for assumptions in others.

Don’t make assumptions yourself!

Just like anyone else, you are making assumptions too! Just imagine that you and your line manager are reading this article. By reading the above, both of you think you should set the right expectations for each other because there are signs of assumptions. Well, I am sure such situations happen every day. Don’t assume! Make sure that things are clear. 

I’ve seen people assume that others know what a great job they do. Often, this is not the case if you don’t advertise yourself and your team enough. It is not that people underestimate you - they might just not have the needed visibility. You might assume your manager knows how much you want to develop yourself in a particular area, but does your boss really know it?

Once I started building one of my teams, I assumed that moving from a legacy product to a new product would take from 6 months to a year and that the people in the team would be ok with this. First of all, it took longer and second, they assumed less.

I’ve assumed that some colleagues would naturally place the team’s needs before their own or listen to their colleagues’ feedback - but people don’t always do that.

If you find that things are not happening the way you expected, think about it - it is likely you had made assumptions, which turned out wrong without you realising it. The best technique I found is to try to reflect and analyse. You could use a simple root cause analysis technique, such as five whys. If you answer somewhere with an assumption, go and validate that assumption. In such a situation, the best assumption you can make is to assume that you were wrong in your previous assumption. I know that sounds tricky, but doubting your assumption might save you a lot of energy, trouble and bad feelings.

I will only say that I had to rebuild a team or deal with a “cry baby” person due to some assumptions mentioned above. So the costs might be significant.

Self-reflection every once in a while helps to be better and make fewer assumptions.

As I said, we tend to make assumptions very naturally and intuitively, which is normal as it helps us live our everyday lives. It is ok to assume “the store should be open during these hours”, “the car will stop at a red light”, “I will finish work by 5 p.m., so I will be able to go see a movie at the cinema”. It is natural to have assumptions. However, when your assumption affects other professionals, it is good to be more careful and try to do self-reflection in at least two instances:

• how do I make decisions
• stepping out of a conversation in frustration

It is essential to ask yourself why am I frustrated - is it because of what someone did or said, or is it because of an unmet expectation? Our expectations are often wrong, which is due to the way we set expectations for ourselves for different situations. 

If you’ve decided to be a formal leader, this is a conscious choice, so you should try to be less on autopilot and understand better your choices. They often affect the rest of the people you are working with. Once you ASSUME something, check with the people around you whether what you’re assuming is what they are saying or understanding. 

It is not a failure to be mistaken, but it is a failure to refuse to admit the mistake.