Carl’s Rules

Carl’s Rules have represented part of how I lead teams for over 15 years.

Some of you have seen versions of them. They’ve evolved, but the core hasn’t changed.

One of them is about respect.

Respect isn’t about tone or intent. It shows up in whether you returned the call. Closed the loop. Communicated clearly — even when the answer wasn’t what someone wanted to hear.

You can disagree, say no, or make the hard call and still show respect. But if you don’t follow through and communicate it, none of the intent matters.

Teams don’t fail because they lack values. They fail when values stop showing up in behavior.