Conventional wisdom says set high expectations. Research says it's more complicated than that. University of Pennsylvania scholar Samir Nurmohamed found that the effect of high or low expectations depends almst entirely on credibility. Credible sources create self-fulfilling prophecies. Non-credible sources create underdogs who work harder to prove them wrong. In a pandemic, your leadership credibility is the single most valuable asset you have.

Leaders spend enormous energy on mission, vision, and values, and then wonder why their employees still feel disconnected from the work. The missing link is relationships. Research shows that meaningful work depends less on what leaders say about it and more on the social networks surrounding employees while they do it. In a post-proximity world, great leaders have to build those networks on purpose. Chance encounters are no longer going to do the job for them.