Mr. Pankaj Vasani, Group CFO at Cube Highways InvIT, has been in leadership roles at Publicis Groupe, Vodafone, Coca-Cola and Subros.
As I stood facing a roomful of analysts, each poring over our quarterly disclosures with surgical precision, I was reminded yet again how modern leadership is not just about delivery but about managing expectations. Numbers have souls, and sometimes, so do balance sheets. But it is the relentless burden of expectations, real or perceived, that tests the mettle of leaders today far more than financial complexity ever could.
The Silent Weight Of The Unspoken
In my early years as a CFO, a mentor once told me: “Never mistake silence for absence of expectation. The quietest board member often expects the most.” It was only when I failed to anticipate a subtle ask during a committee meeting (lack of sleep, I guess) and subsequently had to endure a withering glance over coffee that I truly understood the wisdom of his words.
In the corporate sphere, expectations are rarely written. They simmer, bubble and occasionally boil over. Investors expect perpetual outperformance, teams expect infallible guidance, regulators expect clairvoyance, and the media expect quotable eloquence. Somewhere between debt covenants and deferred tax assets, the human dimension of leadership often begins to crack.
Yet, the greatest struggle isn’t managing their expectations; it is wrestling with our own.
The Tyranny Within
The private expectations we set for ourselves are often more tyrannical than any external mandate. I remember the week when three refinancing deals converged, an ERP overhaul went live and I received news that my father had taken ill. That Thursday, I found myself sitting in the hospital at 3 a.m., redlining a document—not because anyone demanded it but because my standards refused to let it wait.
Burnout, I’ve come to realize, often masquerades as diligence. The pursuit of perfection, when left unchecked, can become a self-imposed prison.
In our world, the metrics are relentless: return on investment, net debt/EBITDA, free cash flows, dividend distribution, etc. But no spreadsheet carries a line item for mental equilibrium. No one asks how “return on sanity” is faring this quarter.
Stress Is Not The Enemy
Being optimally stressed can be good, healthy and normal—provided the dwelling is limited to an earmarked “worry-period” of say 20 to 30 minutes every day, which should diminish over time. The problem starts when the emotions become obstreperous and immoderate (i.e., we get “too absorbed”) and hide behind polite smiles and well-ironed suits.
As Marcus Aurelius wrote: “You have power over your mind, not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength.” The difference between those who burn out and those who burn bright often lies in a singular skill: The ability to separate what we can control from what we cannot.
A few years ago, during a rather tense negotiation, I found myself fraying. Our investor was obstinate, the seller was impatient, and my team was exhausted. That evening, as I sat at my desk, I asked myself: What exactly am I fighting for?
Sometimes, the answer is to press forward. Sometimes, it is to pause. That evening, I did the unthinkable and left the office at 5 p.m. I had dinner with my teenage daughter, who told me I had started speaking in bullet points even at home. Her comment stung, but it healed more than any spa retreat could.
Managing Expectations With Elegance
So, how does one navigate this minefield?
1. Frame, don’t chase. Expectations will always be there, but you can define their boundaries. If you don’t shape the narrative, someone else will. Early in one of our IPO preparation journeys, I made it a point to over-communicate risk scenarios to the board. “Tell them when the horse is unwell, not dead” became a mantra.
2. Learn to disappoint gracefully. Not all expectations can be met, and that is not failure—it’s reality. I once had to turn down a strategic acquisition that my CEO was emotionally invested in. It wasn’t easy. But when logic is delivered with respect, even rejection earns dignity. The key is never to surprise without context.
3. Create detachment rituals. My ritual is a 6 a.m. walk without devices. I observe pigeons—yes, pigeons—and am fascinated by their consistency. In the midst of corporate chaos, there’s something meditative about creatures that have no KPIs.
4. Build a feedback sanctuary. As leaders, we often live in echo chambers of affirmation. Find two people, no more, who can be brutally honest with you, yet love you enough to speak gently. Mine are my colleague and my elder sister. Between the two, they balance rigor and grace.
5. Embrace imperfections. We are not bullet points on a resume. We are stories, half-finished, still being edited. Give yourself the same kindness you’d offer a junior team member on their worst day.
The Beautiful Unbearable Lightness
There is a certain poetry in pressure—if we choose to see it. Like coal morphing into diamonds, expectation, when embraced, can sculpt brilliance. But left unmanaged, it corrodes the core.
I often remind my finance team during closing weeks: “The world will not end if the MIS comes a day late. But it might, if you stop smiling entirely.”
The art, then, is not in escaping stress but in learning to let it pass through you like rain through bamboo. It is in discovering. As Viktor Frankl wrote: “Between stimulus and response, there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response.”
A Final Word
I don’t have all the answers. Frankly, I no longer seek them. What I now strive for is rhythm between precision and poetry, between spreadsheets and soul, between discipline and delight.
Leadership isn’t about being unshakeable; it is about learning to sway without breaking.
And so, to all my fellow warriors in corner offices: Let us not fear expectation. Let us rise to it. But let us also, quietly, unapologetically, protect our peace.
Even balance sheets deserve rest days. So do we.
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