OTL Newsletter - How your Expectations can impact your team's performance (and hold them back)

Observation 🧐

Your team isn’t performing. What did you expect?

You push, you coach, you remind them what’s at stake. But they’re still not stepping up. Quota is slipping. Deals are stalling. The same reps keep struggling.

Maybe it’s not their effort that’s the problem. Maybe it’s your expectations of them.

The Power of Expectations

Daniel Kish lost his vision as a baby. His mother had two choices: shield him from the world or treat him no differently than any other child. She chose the latter.

She let him explore, climb trees, and even ride a bike - blind!! Instead of telling him what he couldn’t do, she trusted him to figure it out.

Daniel didn’t just adapt; he developed a technique to navigate his surroundings -  echolocation. By clicking his tongue, he “sees” the world around him. Today, he teaches other blind people to do the same.

The lesson? High expectations don’t just predict success. They create it.

Science proves this. A psychology study split identical lab rats into two groups. One group was labeled “smart,” the other “dumb.” In reality, there was no difference.

Yet the “smart” rats performed twice as well. Why? Because their handlers believed in them. They handled them with more care, encouraged them, and unknowingly set them up to succeed.

The same happens in sales.

When you assume a rep isn’t capable, your behavior shifts—less coaching, fewer opportunities, lower standards. They absorb that belief. Their performance follows.

Many leaders don’t realize they’re signaling low expectations. It’s not intentional, but small actions add up. 

Here’s how you might be limiting your team without even knowing it:

1️⃣ Softening Feedback

You don’t want to demoralize them, so you phrase feedback in a way that’s easy to digest. “You’re doing fine, just work on X a little more.” But real growth comes from clear, direct coaching. Reps can’t improve if they don’t know exactly what needs to change.

2️⃣ Rescuing Instead of Coaching

A deal is going sideways, and instead of letting the AE problem solve, you jump in. You take over the negotiation, rewrite their emails, or join every call. It feels like support, but it signals: I don’t trust you to figure this out.

3️⃣ Lowering the Bar for Struggling Reps

When a rep consistently misses quota, do you reduce their target? Give them smaller accounts? That teaches them to settle. The right approach is to help them reach the bar, not lower it for them.

4️⃣ Assigning High-Stakes Opportunities to the Same Top Performers

Who gets the biggest deals? The best accounts? If it’s always the same AEs, you’re reinforcing a hierarchy of expectations. “These reps are closers. These other reps aren’t ready.” Instead, rotate opportunities and challenge more team members to step up.

5️⃣ Assuming Struggles Are Permanent

Ever thought, “This rep just isn’t good at enterprise deals”? That assumption shapes your actions. You stop giving them complex accounts. They stop trying to break into bigger deals. What if, instead, you approached it as: They’re not good at it yet?

How to set high expectations without being unrealistic or demotivating: 

The key is to challenge them while providing support. 

1️⃣ Expect More Than They Expect of Themselves

Most people operate within their comfort zone. A great leader stretches that. If a rep says, “I don’t think I can hit $1M this quarter,” respond with, “Why not? What’s stopping you?” Push them to expand their own belief in what’s possible.

2️⃣ Treat Them Like High Performers Before They Are

Confidence grows from belief. If you act like a rep isn’t ready for big deals, they won’t be. Instead, give them an enterprise account and say, “I picked you for this because I know you can handle it.” Let them rise to the challenge.

3️⃣ Don’t Lower the Standard, Support Them to Meet It

Holding someone to a high bar doesn’t mean leaving them to struggle alone. If an AE isn’t hitting their number, don’t cut their quota, help them get better. Roleplay tough calls. Break down their lost deals. Give them the tools to succeed.

4️⃣ Call Out Limiting Beliefs

If a rep says, “I’m just not good at cold outreach,” challenge that belief and coach them through it. The way they frame their ability impacts their behavior. Help them rewrite the story: “I’m not good at cold outreach yet”

5️⃣ Challenge Them in Small, Achievable Ways

High expectations don’t mean throwing someone into the deep end with no support. If a rep has never closed an enterprise deal, don’t just hand them a Fortune 500 account. Start by having them shadow a senior rep. Then let them take the lead on a smaller deal. Incremental challenges build capability.

6️⃣ Make Development a Non Negotiable

If a rep wants to stay in their comfort zone, don’t let them. Hold regular skill based coaching sessions. Set individual growth goals and make progress an expectation, not an option.

Sales leaders don’t just drive numbers. They shape potential. The best leaders don’t accept “That rep just isn’t good at X.” They ask, “What will it take to get them there?”

Your team will live up (or down) to your expectations. Expect more. Watch them rise.

Thought Starter  🤔

Love 🥰

I learned the story I shared above about Daniel Kish in my favourite podcast episode of all time “How to Become Batman” on Invisibilia.

The episode has a powerful message for all parents (and leaders) on how our expectations can impact the lives of those in our charge.