The check-in and the one lie in it · From Zero to Goals, lesson 11 of 17
The check-in and the one lie in it
Run a ten-minute weekly check-in and spot status theatre before it costs you the quarter.
The check-in and the one lie in it
Ten minutes a week is the entire machine. Goals do not die at the deadline. They die in the silent weeks between kickoff and review, and the weekly check-in is the only thing standing in the way.
But check-ins breed a parasite: status theatre, updates that perform progress instead of reporting it. It has a smell, and this lesson teaches your nose. Week four at Brightside; four updates on the screen.
Four updates, week four
Sam, zero churn (commitment): “All good, no warning signals from any client.”
Priya, leads 4→10: “6 this month. Pipeline warming: two industry events booked for May.”
Leo, content engine 0→8: “On track! Working on several pieces at once, really good momentum this week.”
Dana, win rate 20→30%: “Rough week: lost two proposals, we’re at 1 of 5 this month. Digging into why we lost them.”
Which update should worry you MOST?
Ninety seconds left. One question.
You’ve flagged Leo’s update. The check-in has ninety seconds left for his goal, the rest of the room is listening, and the question you pick will either produce a fact, or another mood.
Four candidates are on the tip of Dana’s tongue.
Which question unmasks the theatre?
Three questions, ten minutes, zero adjectives
The meta-rule matters more than the format: praise the honest 0.2 louder than the vague “on track”. A team’s check-ins are exactly as honest as the reception of its worst news, and that reception is set by you in the first three weeks.
Write your three questions and book the slot
Write the three check-in questions in your own words and put the weekly slot in the calendar: same day, same ten minutes. Then note which of your team’s last updates would have failed the no-adjectives rule.
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More on weekly check-ins
All optional, and none of it is needed for the certificate. Each opens in a new tab, so your place in the lesson is kept.
- A goal check-in template ↗A check-in you can paste into your calendar this week, questions included.5 min read