Mid-Year Check-In: The Cost of Ghosting and the Power of Follow-Up

Hi Leaders,

As I was pulling into a college campus this week, my mind circled back to an article I’d recently read. The headline hit like a brick: More than 70% of employees say they’ve been ghosted by their managers or leaders.

Yikes.

That stat stopped me cold—not just because I believe deeply in being a present, engaged leader, but because it underlines a tough truth: up to 85% of people in leadership roles haven’t been given the tools they need to lead effectively.

Think about that. We promote, assign, or elevate someone into a leadership role—yet we don’t always equip them with what they need to succeed. Leadership, after all, isn’t a personality contest or a job title. It’s a skillset. And that skillset must include regular, thoughtful check-ins and goal setting if we want to build high-performing, loyal teams.

The Tools Leaders Actually Need

Here are just a few of the critical tools that are too often overlooked:

Strategies to clearly communicate vision
Tools to delegate with clarity and confidence
Approaches to hold both accountability and compassion
Coaching and feedback frameworks that build trust, not fear

And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. We spend a lot of time in leadership development courses talking about styles—collaborative, authoritative, servant, etc.—but rarely get into the meat and potatoes of actually leading. (I say this with full authority after slogging through more leadership textbooks than I care to count over the last 15 years of teaching college-level leadership and management!)

Here’s the truth: you can’t build a house with just a hammer. And you can’t lead a team with only good intentions.

Back to the Ghosting Problem...

This is your friendly reminder: it’s MID-YEAR. Right now is the perfect time to check in with your team—not just with a passing “how’s it going?” but with a structured, intentional conversation.

If you’re only using casual check-ins, you’re essentially tapping your knuckles on the wall to see if it's sound. It’s time to switch to full inspection mode.

Try these impactful check-in questions:

For Goals & Accomplishments

What’s been your biggest win in the last six months?
If there was one thing I could do to make it easier for you to reach your goals, what would it be?
What’s one thing we could improve in our team or org that would make your work more impactful?
Is there a skill or project you’d love to explore to get closer to your long-term career goals?

For the Whole Human

Who supports you most in your goals outside of work? Do they know how valuable you are to this team?
Outside of your career, what’s one personal goal you’d love to accomplish in the next five years?

Follow-Up: Where High-Performing Teams Are Made

Check-ins are great. But follow-up is where the magic happens. The difference between a check-in and a breakthrough? Action.

When you ask someone about their goals and challenges—and then follow through—you build trust, engagement, and momentum. When you don’t, you chip away at morale.

That’s where we loop back to the 70% who feel ghosted. Many of them are actively looking for other jobs. Others have disengaged, showing up in body but not in energy or creativity. And here’s the kicker:

Replacing an employee costs between 25% to 200% of their salary
Disengaged employees cost the U.S. economy over $550 billion annually

Let that sink in.

Equip, Train, Check-In

If you’re in a leadership role—whether you're managing three people or thirty—this is your moment to reset. Equip yourself with the right tools. Make check-ins count. Follow up. Be willing to ask, listen, and act.

And if something’s broken in your organization or team? Be honest about it. Vulnerability is not weakness—it’s leadership in its strongest form.

So don’t ghost your people. The cost is too high. And the opportunity to build something amazing is far too valuable.

Unlock Leadership Excellence and Drive Results

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