What Your Team Actually Needs from You
If you've ever found yourself wondering why your team isn’t quite hitting the mark - despite being full of good people - you’re not alone.
Managing a team can sometimes feel harder than it should. Things aren’t falling apart, but there’s a constant sense of being bogged down in people problems, indecision, and micromanagement.
Here’s the truth: your team likely isn’t underperforming due to lack of skill or effort.
More often than not, what’s missing are a few foundational elements that no one ever taught us to prioritise. And your team? They won’t ask for these things, but they need them to thrive.
Let’s break down the three things every team needs from their leader (even if they don’t know how to ask).
- Clarity
As Brene Brown says ‘clear is kind, unclear is unkind’ – it’s not just a great quote, creating clarity for your team is one of the foundations of effective leadership. And yet, most team issues can be traced back to one root cause: a lack of clear expectations.
It’s easy to assume we’re being clear. After all, we’ve communicated the task, right? But real clarity means going further:
- What exactly is expected?
- Why is it important?
- When does it need to be done?
- How will success be measured?
When your team doesn’t have this clarity, they guess. They second-guess. They check in repeatedly, hesitate, or avoid taking initiative altogether. They fear doing the wrong thing more than they want to get it right.
Think about it: would you feel confident taking action without knowing whether it’s aligned with your leader’s expectations?
If your team is constantly circling back with questions or failing to take ownership, check how clear you’ve really been. Not just about tasks, but about priorities, timelines, and outcomes.
- Structure
We often think our teams crave freedom and flexibility - and yes, they do - but not in a vacuum. What high-performing teams really need is structure.
Structure isn’t about rigid control. It’s about predictability and rhythm. Regular check-ins. Clear meeting cadences. A known process for updates or approvals. Systems that help people succeed.
In the absence of structure, chaos reigns. And while you might be used to flying by the seat of your pants, your team doesn’t thrive that way.
Remember the early days of the pandemic? The teams that coped best weren’t the ones with all the answers—they were the ones whose leaders created a framework: “Here’s what we know. Here’s what we don’t. Here’s how we’ll move forward.”
That’s structure. And that’s what helps people perform in uncertainty.
So whether it’s a weekly team huddle, a shared to-do list, or a clear reporting line, don’t underestimate how much structure simplifies your team's daily decision-making.
- Boundaries
Now, here’s the hard one - especially for the people-pleasers among us.
Your team needs boundaries. Not just the ones you set, but the ones you uphold.
We’re usually okay at setting boundaries in theory. But in practice? We slip. We make exceptions. We avoid confrontation. We say yes too often, jump in to fix things, or put off hard conversations.
Boundaries tell your team where the line is. They provide safety, consistency, and accountability. Without them, people get confused about what’s acceptable. And when boundaries are crossed without correction, things start to unravel - slowly, then all at once.
Here’s a simple example: A team member starts arriving right on the dot instead of their usual 10 minutes early. No big deal. But then it becomes five minutes late, then 15. And because you didn’t address the earlier shifts, your frustration builds. When you finally say something, it seems like an overreaction to them—because they had no idea the line had moved.
Boundaries aren’t about being harsh. They’re about being honest. Upholding them consistently is one of the most respectful things you can do for your team.
The Leadership Shift That Changes Everything
These three elements—clarity, structure, and boundaries—aren’t just leadership tactics.
They’re the invisible frameworks that keep your team operating smoothly. When they’re missing, everything takes longer, requires more input from you, and ends up being more frustrating than it needs to be.
But when you put them in place? Your team becomes more autonomous. You make fewer decisions. Things get done faster. And you get to focus on growing your business instead of constantly putting out fires.
So here’s the challenge: Which one of these is missing in your team right now? What’s one small step you can take this week to bring more clarity, structure, or boundary-setting into your leadership?
Start there. Your team will thank you—even if they don’t say it out loud.
An Invitation
If you’d like to connect with other business owners, leaders and managers, I’d love for you to join us inside our free Facebook Group where you can connect with other like minded business owners, leaders and managers to discuss all things HR:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/hrsupportaustralia
