Something to doWorking with your manager
Check you're aimed at what matters
A micro exercise to revisit your goals with your manager, stay aligned, and avoid surprises later
Why it’s worth your time
One of the easiest ways to avoid wasted effort is to confirm that what you're working on really matters. Priorities shift quietly, a new project, a reorg, a change in direction, and nobody may think to tell you. Checking in each quarter keeps your effort pointed where it counts and gives your manager confidence you're focused on the right things.
How to align your goals with your manager
You’ll come away with two or three goals you and your manager agree on, written down.
We’ll turn this into a checklist you can tick off.
- Write down your current goals.
Two or three is plenty. If you don't have formal goals, write the priorities you believe matter most right now.
Tip: Add a few words on what each goal is for. It's easier to check the why than the what.
- Write down your manager's goals too.
What is your manager trying to achieve this quarter, and what does success look like for your team? If you can't say, that's worth knowing, and worth asking.
- Add it to your next 1:1 and send a preview.
Give them a day or two to look. A manager who has seen your list comes ready to adjust it rather than react to it.
To: your managerI'd like to take a few minutes in our next 1:1 to make sure I'm headed in the right direction. Here's how I currently understand my goals and priorities:
1. first goal, and what it's for
2. second goal, and what it's for
3. third goal, and what it's for
Does this still match where I should be focused? Happy to adjust if priorities have shifted.
Swap the highlighted parts for your thing. Works on Slack, in email, or said out loud. - Use the conversation to realign.
Ask what's changed, what matters most now, and what good looks like by the end of the quarter. Be open to reprioritizing; that's the point.
You“If you could only protect one of these by the end of the quarter, which would it be?” - Write down what you agreed.
A two-line note afterward confirms it for both of you, and gives you something to point to at review time.
Good moments for this: at the start of each quarterafter a reorg or a new managera month before your review
We’ll turn this into a checklist you can tick off.
Keep going with Truest
Small actions add up. Truest helps you find the next thing worth doing, make the space to do it, and keep a record of your progress. It’s a private place to work on your career, and it’s yours, not your employer’s.
- It actually happensDo it now, and you’ve invested in your career today.
- A living page in your VaultKeep it as one page you add to, next to your reviews and your files.
- It’s yours to keepEach thing you do is saved to your private record, there when your next review or job search comes around.
Anything else we can help you with this week?
Making it work for you
Every workplace is different. Here’s what to think about before you start, and what might get in the way.
Things to think about
Your goals usually exist to serve theirs. Knowing what your manager is measured on often explains priorities that otherwise seem arbitrary.
What might make this harder
Draft what you think they should be and say so plainly: I realized I didn't have clarity on my goals, here's what I think they are, am I right, and what would you change?
Questions people ask
How do I talk to my manager about my goals?
Write them down, send them ahead of a 1:1, and ask whether they still match what matters most. Keep it to two or three goals, and be open to changing them.
What if I don't have clear goals at work?
Draft what you think they should be and ask your manager to confirm or correct them. Most managers welcome this, and it turns a vague situation into a clear one.
How often should I check in on goals with my manager?
Quarterly works well for most roles, with an extra check after any big change such as a reorg, a new manager, or a shift in strategy.
What is managing up?
Broadly, making it easier for your manager to support you: understanding their goals, keeping them informed, and raising issues early. A regular goals check-in is one of its simplest forms.
Why this works, and where it comes from
Goals drift. Not usually because anyone decided to change them on you, but because priorities shift a little at a time: a new project, a leadership change, a customer that suddenly matters more. The goals you were given in January can quietly stop being the goals you're measured on. Nobody may think to tell you, because everyone assumes someone else did.
From your manager's side, a goals check-in is good news. It tells them you're thinking about impact, not just activity, and it gives them a cheap moment to correct course before small misalignments become a difficult review. Most managers are juggling shifting priorities of their own; your asking is sometimes the first time they've written theirs down.
That's why it helps to understand your manager's goals as well as your own. Your work usually exists to serve something bigger, and when you know what that is, you can make good calls about priorities without asking every time. Understanding what success looks like for the people around you is what lets you contribute to it.
This is a familiar practice, sometimes called managing up. Truest's version adds two small things: send your goals ahead so the conversation starts from something concrete, and ask why when priorities change. If the answer is that something you care about matters less now, that can sting. It's still far better to learn it in a 1:1 than in a review.
Other simple things to consider
More in Working with your manager
See allRead this alongside your role page
Tell Truest what you’re dealing with
We read every one, and we write guides for the things that come up most. Leave your email if you’d like to hear when we do.
An exercise written by Truest, based on our experience. Last updated October 2, 2026. We sell a career membership; where that’s relevant above, we say so.