The first time I had an argument with my boss was over clocking in at 9 AM.

This was back in 2014. While the official workday ended at 5:30 PM, I regularly stayed until 8 or 9 PM. I was delivering results & putting in the hours.

But I was clocking in around 10 AM instead of 9 AM.

The admin had complained to my boss about my "tardiness." So there I was, having to defend myself for arriving an hour "late" while working 2-3 hours past when everyone else had gone home.

The argument fell on deaf ears.

Sound familiar?

We’ve all been there:
- One person abuses flexible work, so everyone loses flexibility.
- Someone misses deadlines, so everyone gets micromanaged.
- One bad hire leads to restrictive interview processes for all candidates.
- Someone overspends, so everyone needs approval for paper clips.

Here’s what’s really happening when we design policies around our worst performers:

• Your best people start feeling like they’re being treated like children.
• High performers get slowed down by bureaucracy designed for people who can’t be trusted.
• Innovation dies because every new idea has to survive a process built to prevent mistakes.

And worst of all? Your top talent starts looking for places that actually trust them.

The Fear-Driven Policy Trap

I get why this happens. One person creates a problem and our instinct is to prevent it from happening again. So we build a system.

But here’s the thing:
You’re not actually solving the problem. You’re just spreading it to everyone.

That person who couldn’t be trusted with purchasing decisions? The real solution wasn’t a new approval process. It was a direct conversation about expectations, followed by either improvement or a different role.

Instead, you created a system that assumes everyone else can’t be trusted either.

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Today’s Permission Slip:
You have permission to design your workplace for your best people, not your worst.

This feels risky because what if someone takes advantage?

What if you look naive for trusting people?

What if something goes wrong and you could have prevented it with the right policy?

But consider this: Which costs more in the long run?

Losing one high performer because they felt micromanaged or dealing directly with one poor performer?

Having your best people spend three hours on approvals or having one difficult conversation about expectations?

The Trust-Forward Alternative

Instead of asking “How do we prevent this problem?” ask “How do we empower our best people?”

Start with these principles:
- Clear expectations with freedom to execute.
- Outcome-based accountability, not process control.
- Individual conversations with struggling team members.
- The courage to make hard decisions about people who consistently can’t meet standards.

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This Week’s Practice:
​Look at one policy or process that frustrates your best performers.

Ask yourself:
- Was this created because of one person’s poor performance?
- Does this assumption of incompetence slow down high performers?
- Could we address individual issues individually instead?

Then try this: Remove or simplify the policy for your proven performers. See what happens.

This Week’s Question:
Which policy in your workplace was designed to prevent the worst behaviour instead of enabling the best performance?

Here’s to leading differently,
Raghav

P.S. Have you lost a great team member because of policies designed for poor performers? Hit reply - I’ve been there too and these stories matter.

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