Rules to Make People Feel They Rule
When we started DotB, we knew we had to set some ground rules. These rules would serve as the building blocks of our culture, as foundations of how we interact on the daily. We needed to establish rules that were more than just lines in the sand, that respected the individuality of the people we were working with but at the same time, rules that allowed people to grow within the culture we were building as one unified entity.
We don’t like micromanaging people, so our rules gave them both the freedom as well as the guidelines on how to contribute the best (and least non-productive) versions of themselves.
Expectations and Reality
Before we hire, we interview our prospective team member to check if the level of commitment, work attitude as well as ethics, and expected salary match with ours. Working remotely means a certain freedom and responsibility, and before we impose any rules, we want to align the “non-negotiables” of our team members with ours; this is to make sure that the expectations become reality and to avoid any conflict when it comes to the rules later on.
A good example of this first rule is the question, “Are you sure you can do it in this time frame?” or “Would you like some help figuring out the most efficient way to do that thing?” Asia often asks. As a team, it’s much better to have realistic expectations of how people can deliver the amount of work they need to, without having to plump up the numbers. We would rather have someone under promise and over deliver than someone that over promises and fails to deliver.
Universal Rules
We have universal rules for everyone in our team. They’re simple and easy to follow. Introducing our company culture starts with a request that they honor this one golden rule: if you’re straight up having a bad day, and need a break, all we need is a heads up. We would much prefer the transparency and humility to ask for help than the creativity of coming up with excuses.
Sisa and Asia regularly ask for breaks when the going gets [too] tough.
We want to be mindful of our capabilities and limitations, and we want our team to have that same awareness.
But for working hours, we are pretty flexible, as long as the deadlines aren’t tight. We require being online for a specific time frame so that daily stand-ups and status updates can be shared, this means being able to reply on Slack if needed. We also realize that this kind of flexibility is not the norm, so we have to remind everyone of this fact.
The rest of the day is up to our crew to divvy up as they see fit. It helps to have time tracking apps to make sure we’re also accountable for our own internal deadlines. We do weekly updates as well. If a member of the team ends up finishing their tasks for the week early and well, then good for them. We don’t ask them to work just for the sake of working — we also stress the importance of prioritizing their personal lives. Our teammates don’t need permission to attend personal events or errands. As long as the rest of the team gets a heads up, we can always adapt.
Personalizing Certain Rules
Now everything we’ve written sounds like a dream, I’m sure. But it’s helped us be more dedicated to our work and our output than if we were to force ourselves and our co-workers into boxes. That said, certain rules still apply to certain circumstances.
Normally, before it gets to a point where we, as managers, are asking if it’s possible to have three dental appointments in a day (do they love root canals that much?!), we have a small checklist to follow: if a person is behind their tasks for the day, has not clocked in, has not updated their status, then we have The Talk™. Once we resolve whatever is causing this disconnect, we see what ways either of us can adapt to their situation.
To avoid this we try to keep everyone accountable to themselves first, and us after. For example, our by-the-hour freelancers are required to use Freshbooks and clock in their working hours, no matter how those hours are divided during the day. Then, ManicTime provides a backup reference log to those hours in case the invoices are inconsistent with that person’s participation.
We’ve only ever had to ask to see back up logs once. In the end, as long as they’re interacting, taking initiative, and delivering on the tasks given them, more often than not, our crewmates have more free time and freedom than they’d ever had in their other jobs.
Takeaway
Rules are important because they help us build our culture and our work ethics. When rooted to what’s fair for both the company and its people, they set the foundations of fulfilling expectations and creating a healthy as well as dynamic workplace.
