One of the most helpful things I find with colleagues, is when I know they’ll just take care of something. Aligning expectations and setting up feedback loops helps, of course, but some people more readily demonstrate ownership of their work.

Given a little direction they go a long way, checking in only for course correction and without a blow-by-blow account of the obstacles. They roam free within understood boundaries and exercise initiative before coming to a halt. They’re not going to wait around stumped and tell you too late that something’s an issue though – you’re presented the opportunity to assist or advise when it’s appropriate.

There’s a lot of value in looking beyond the task and at how we get it done.