Episode 94: Make Priorities Visible

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Priorities only matter if people can see and understand them. In this episode of The Workplace Chameleon, Dr. Celina Peerman explores how priorities that feel crystal clear to a leader can remain completely invisible to everyone else — and why that invisibility comes at such a high cost. She explains the common ways priorities fade into the background, from assumptions that “everyone already knows” to noise from urgent tasks and shifting focus when leaders themselves drift. Through stories and reflections, Dr. Celina highlights the real consequences of hidden priorities, including misaligned work, scattered energy, missed deadlines, frustration, and even erosion of trust. You’ll learn practical ways to make priorities visible — by saying them out loud, writing them down, repeating them often, and connecting them to the “why” behind the work — as well as how leaders must model alignment with their own calendars and actions if they want their teams to believe it. This week’s challenge: take one priority that’s been living in your head, share it out loud, and make it visible enough that your team can see, repeat, and act on it. Because priorities only do their job when they’re clear to everyone, not just you.

For more leadership tools and resources, visit www.drcelinapeerman.com
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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
Welcome back to the Workplace Chameleon where, I
don't know, we keep trying rightto adapt, align and lead with
intention.
It's a work in progress,especially when this workplace
feels a little wild.
Progress, especially when thisworkplace feels a little wild.

(00:29):
Today.
I want to talk about prioritiesthat feel crystal clear in your
head but are not completelyvisible to everyone else.
My name's Dr Selina and I thinkone of the challenges we've got
is that when priorities stay inyour head, you can't guide your
team, they can't influencedecisions, they can't protect

(00:51):
time, they can't align effortnot your team, but because the
priorities are in your head andthat really means that they
aren't really priorities,they're just ideas.
I use the phrase with my ownteam.
I got to get it out of my head.
I got to tell you what I'mthinking.
It's in my brain, but thosearen't priorities, they're

(01:16):
simply just, in my case, 300squirrels with ideas.
Today, in this episode, let'slook at why priorities so often
go invisible, what it costs and,most importantly, how to make
them visible so everyone ismoving in the same direction.

(01:37):
First, let's define it.
Let's define it Invisible.
Priorities are the goals, tasksor values that matter the most
to you but aren't communicated,reinforced or shared in a way
that others can act on.
There are a few common waysthis seems to happen.

(01:59):
More Number one assumption weassume people already know what
matters most.
Maybe you've mentioned it oncein a meeting or you think it's
obvious.
But people are busy, they'rejuggling a dozen things and if

(02:19):
you don't repeat and reinforceit, it does not stick.
Noise Priorities get buriedunder urgent tasks, side
projects or the classic wellyou're at it requests Pretty
soon.
The true priorities are hiddenunder a mountain of busy work,
leader drift.
Sometimes we forget our owndeclared priorities.

(02:40):
No-transcript.
It might be like a fire drillthat demands attention and
suddenly we're chasing somethingelse without realizing it.
I think about examples, and onethat comes to mind is a team

(03:01):
that I'm familiar with wherethey had a top priority as
customer retention, but becauseit just wasn't consistently
communicated, they focused moreon sales numbers.
The results sales grew, but atthe same time, customer churn

(03:22):
spiked.
Everyone was working reallyhard, just not on the same
stated thing.
Consider this what's onepriority that's crystal clear to
you right now, but you haven'tsaid it out loud to your team
this week?
This might be the episode whenmy team listens they go Selena,
this one.

(03:42):
Why?
Well, there are a lot of whysto this, but let me start with
the cost of hidden priorities.
When priorities aren't visible,the costs stack up quickly.
Misaligned focus People putenergy into the wrong work.
I don't know about your team,but I don't have any spare time.
My team needs to be working onthe right stuff.

(04:05):
So does yours.
Scattered energy also comes tomind.
Efforts get diluted across toomany things.
Missed deadlines, clarity isn'tthere, so no one really knows
what projects matter most.
Frustration and burnout.
People feel like they'reworking hard, but their efforts

(04:29):
aren't recognized or rewarded.
Hard, but their efforts aren'trecognized or rewarded.
It's like trying to win a relayrace when half the team doesn't
know where the finish line is.
They're running, but nottogether.
Another cost, one of our hardestones to fix trust when

(04:58):
priorities aren't visible,people start to second-guess
leadership.
They wonder do they actuallyknow where we're headed?
That kind of doubt spreads fast.
Here's a difference.
A goal is an aspiration,something you want to achieve.
My goal is dot dot dot.

(05:21):
A priority is a choice,something you actively elevate
above other options.
If no one can see it, it's notguiding choices, and without
choices, it is just wishfulthinking.
Squirrel alert.

(05:42):
An invisible priority is just awish.
Visible priorities drive action.
Consider this If someone askedthree people on your team to
list the top priorities, wouldtheir answers match or would you

(06:06):
hear three different lists?
I think that speaks volumes.
It doesn't mean it's going tobe all the time, but I think we
could do this better.
So how do you make prioritiesvisible?
The good news is it doesn'thave to be complicated.

(06:27):
I really think the key issue isto be consistent.
I'm going to note four ways youcould start right now.
Number one say them out loud.
Don't assume people remember.
Start meetings with here'swhat's most important this week.
Say it often.
I like to point out repetitionis not nagging, it's clarity.

(06:50):
Number two write them down.
Post them somewhere everyonecan see In a shared doc, a
project dashboard, a teamwhiteboard.
If it's not written, it's tooeasy to forget.
Number three repeat them often.
Mention priorities in check-ins, email updates and one-on-ones.

(07:15):
People need reminders indifferent formats.
Number four explain the why.
Don't just say what thepriority is.
Explain why it matters.
People commit more deeply whenthey understand the reasoning.

(07:36):
This is like a scoreboard.
Many of you have key performanceindicators and metrics and
dashboards and all sorts oftrackers In a game.
If you can't see the score, youdon't know how you're doing.
Priorities work the same way.
They must be visible andupdated.

(07:59):
I can have 20 things on mydashboard, on my key performance
indicators, on my scorecard,but if I don't know which ones
to pursue that are mostimportant, I'm going to have a
lot of data and not information.
I'm converting to make greatdecisions.

(08:20):
A leader I was coaching startedending every Monday meeting with
a one-minute recap.
Our top three priorities forthis week are X, y, z.
Here's why At first I know hewould say it just feels like I'm
saying the same thing, butafter a few weeks here's what I
love His team began quotingthose priorities back, and when

(08:52):
they do, they start makingbetter decisions and faster ones
, because they knew whatmattered most.
How often do you assume yourteam knows the priorities versus
how often do they actually saythem out loud because you did?
Okay, here's the hardest part,and let's go with the most
important part on this one you,your behavior, is the cle clear

(09:18):
signal of all.
If you say something as apriority but your calendar, your
emails or your actions do notreflect it, people won't believe
you.
They'll follow what you do, notwhat you say.
Ask yourself am I spending mytime in a way that matches the

(09:41):
priorities I have named?
Do my emails and my meetingsand my decision point towards
those priorities?
If someone shadowed me for aweek, would they know what
matters most by observing me?
If not, it's time to realignand let people see you make that
adjustment.
When a leader says I'mrescheduling this meeting so I

(10:02):
can focus on our top priority,it sends a powerful message.
Remember we're going toreinforce alignment when effort,
resources and attentionconsistently point towards
declared priorities and they canbe acted upon less guessing.

(10:44):
Here's a couple team reflectionquestions you can take with you.
What's one priority that'sclear to me but maybe not to
others?
How could I share it morevisibly this week?
How can we make visibility ateam habit?
Priorities at work have to beseen, shared and understood if

(11:13):
we want to be more effective.
If they only live in your head,those priorities cannot do
their job.
So here's your challenge fromme to you this week Pick one key
priority, say it out loud,write it where people can see it
, repeat it until it sticks,keep doing it and you will be

(11:37):
amazed at how quickly alignmentand progress follow.
Thank you for your trust, yourenergy and your intention about
tuning into the Workplace,chameleon.
If this episode gave you newideas for bringing clarity to

(11:58):
your work, I really appreciateyou sharing it with someone else
.
I'm excited to see what we cando next together.
If you have a suggestion for afuture episode topic, I would
love to hear from you.
Please take care of yourself.
Your health, including yourphysical health and your mental

(12:22):
health, are so important becausewe need you here and others are
counting on us to keep learningsomething new today.
Take care, be well.
I hope that this time andinvestment that you've given to

(12:43):
me, you can feel filled and takeit out to someone else.