The second set of emails seem more legitimate and ones I hadn't anticipated. "What do you want?" My first reaction was that the assignment is not about me, but about you. What do you want? What level of performance would make you proud of your work? What expectations do you have of yourself? What are your benchmarks for what you need to do to get the grade you desire? the need to know is utilitarian so that your are efficient, doing what is needed and not too much more to get the "A." This would make your work both efficient and effective.
But wait, some of this does involve me, the professor and evaluator of your work. What if it turns out I am an "easy grader" and you put more work into the assignment--were less efficient--for the effective "A." Or, just the opposite, you put lots of energy into completing the assignments at a high level only to receive a "B." You might have been better off putting in "B"-level effort to match the grade result.
The easy answer--one you want, but won't get--is just to tell you "what I want." But what would you learn if I did that? You'd learn how to "please" me and that might help you for this course. But what about the next course, the next professor, and the ones after that? Are you going to constantly be in the "tell me what you want" mode? That's both inefficient and ineffective. Let's try something else.
The something else is you honing your own benchmarks for quality work. Let's not rely on the boss, let's rely on ourselves. What is acceptable to you? What will make you puff up your chest, will make you proud, will have you pinning your work on your bulletin board? Find that and you will never again have to play the game "what does he want."
For some of you this probably seems like an unsatisfactory answer. You don't have--or can't find--your internal quality measure. Okay, I have a suggestion. You are business people so imagine I am your employer. What do you need to do to keep your job? That will get you at least a "C." Want more? Well, what will make me shine--get me a promotion? That's probably "B" or "A" work.
Need more benchmark help? Try these answers to specific questions I received for a specific assignment:
- Do I list the changes to improve the business and then an explanation following why I made those changes?
- The boss is a busy person. Start by giving her/him the context of your document. Why are you writing? What issue/problem are you addressing? Then, list, in this case, the changes you would make and your rationale for each. Follow this bulleted list with a final paragraph that closes the memo or suggests next steps.
- How long should it be?
- I hate this question, but let me answer. I am a very busy boss. Tell me EVERYTHING I need to know about this specific issue and no more. Your benchmark is not showing how smart you are but how capable you are of "cutting to the chase," giving me just what I need.
- Hint. This is harder than you might think. It's easy to write 10 pages and hope that the answer is somewhere in your writing and that the boss will find it. It is much, much harder to write one or two pages that are exactly on target.
- Are you accepting it as a Microsoft Word file or do I have to physically change it somewhere on a website?
- What word processing software is your boss most likely to have on his/her computer?
- BTW, not sure how the mind wondered to this possibility that I never considered. Some good advice is KIS: Keep It Simple. The best way and the easiest frequently align.
Ahaaaa. I feel better
