Your Contract’s Up

One client could take direction all day. Giving it was another story. After her boss watched her dance around asking a peer to do his share of the work, she said it plainly: “There’s a huge level of discomfort when I have to be in charge. That’s going to be a problem if I want to be a director.”

The rule running her was an old one: when you speak up, nobody listens anyway, so don’t. For years it kept her safe, and now it was standing between her and the job she wanted.

Here is what I suggested. When that rule kicks in, speak to it like a tenant whose lease is ending: “Thank you. You helped keep me safe. But you’re not renewing your lease. Your contract’s up.”

It is a business conversation with yourself. You thank the old rule for its service and decline to renew, the way you would close out a vendor who did good work for a season and no longer fits where the company is going.

Then you do the new thing, awkwardly at first. Giving a clear direction is a skill built by repetition. Keep going and it starts to feel like part of the job.

All this asks for is one sentence when the old rule shows up, and a few weeks of feeling awkward. Your history stays where it is.

This week, notice the moment you start softening a request you meant to make plainly. Say the line to yourself. Then make the request in one sentence.

Which old rule of yours is due for a non-renewal?