What Maynard from Tool Reminded Me About Expectation Management

I was fortunate enough to see the spectacle that is a live Tool show in Los Angeles recently, as part of a friend's 50th birthday weekend celebrations. For those uninitiated, Tool has been described as anything from a metal band with 'intricate polyrhythms and mathematically guided time signatures' to 'Rock's most lovable pseudo-intellectuals'. Never-the-less, the band has been together making music for 31 years, which has created a passionate legion of fans around the world.As with any concert these days, one becomes accustomed to a sea of cell-phones aloft, recording their favorite moments for Instagram or whatever the social media du jour is.This night would be different and thank goodness.Inside the sold-out 20,000 seat Crypto.com arena in downtown LA, the lights went down and the cheering started for the main act. Maynard, ever both the hero and sardonic anti-hero of every 40 and 50 something year old white male in the audience, came on stage with a new paradigm for the evening...."How about we go on a two-hour journey together tonight WITHOUT your coveted cellphones? Nobody behind you wants to watch the show through your cell phone. Put your ***damn cellphones away and we will let you know it's our last song and all you crack-cell-phone-fiends can record as much as you like".The amazing thing; IT WORKED. 20,000 people put their phones away and were PRESENT for the entire two hours. It was an entirely different and incredible experience. Simply by stating clearly the rules of engagement, everyone complied and GASP....had a memorable experience.It's true, nobody wants to piss off the boss- Maynard, the lead singer of a fearsome metal band in this case, but some not-so-bright folks took their chances and paid the price in subsequent shows. Actions do have conseqeunces.So- what did I learn?Firmly and clearly sharing the rules at the start of any event or meeting - even in a room of 20,000 people is a great starting point. This can apply to moderators of slack groups, facebook pages or meetups, as well as prior to employee-off-sites. Giving clear and concise direction gives our fellow humans the necessary guardrails to have a great experience- AND to get out of the program what THEY need.Yes, there are exceptions to this approach and yes, you do often want to have folks on your team be part of some decision making processes, but in my 24 years in business, more often than not, I've found when everyone is clear on the rules, the results are MUCH better than if there is no clear expectation shared...pseudo-intellectual metal show or not.Check out these middle-school kids' tribute to Tool for some inspiration-   just don't use your cell phone ; )Cheers-Dave 

Dave Mayer
DAVE IS A SERIAL ENTREPRENEUR WITH MORE THAN 25 YEARS OF EXPERIENCE AS AN ENTREPRENEUR, COMMUNITY BUILDER & CATALYST FOR POSITIVE CHANGE.

Dave Mayer is the Founder and CEO of Technical Integrity. Dave is passionate about growing inclusive entrepreneurial ecosystems based on the Give First ethos around Colorado and around the country. He has been consistent and highly visible in the startup scene of Colorado for more than a decade, scaling resilient startup communities, and building the most diverse and innovative engineering and executive teams in the country for his clients. To further emphasize their commitment to diversity in hiring, Dave and Technical Integrity acquired women-in-tech recruiting firm, FindMyFlock, in 2019. He and his recruiting team have been instrumental in helping clients scale intelligently so that they may move towards profitability, IPOs and acquisitions.

Dave also serves on the Steering Committee for Startup Colorado. He is the co-founder of non-profit Aspen Entrepreneurs, a founding member of two mission-driven tech startups, he's an angel investor and a regular speaker on the topic of Mental Health and Wellness in the startup realm.

Dave’s deep community-building experience includes working with the core team of organizers, alongside Downtown Denver Partnership, to produce Denver Startup Week in 2013. Technical Integrity has supported Boulder Startup Week for more than ten years both as an organizer and sponsor.

When Dave is not building teams or speaking in the startup community – you can find him hiking in the mountains with his wife and their senior great danes, riding deep powder on a snowboard, or discovering new music.

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