When founders ask this question, they’re usually not worried about effort.

They’re worried about direction.

The team is busy.
Work is shipping.
Meetings are happening.

But progress feels fragmented — like a lot is happening, yet nothing quite lands. That uneasy feeling is often the first signal that something deeper is off.

And most of the time, it’s not a people problem.
It’s an alignment problem.

The real issue most founders miss

Teams rarely work against each other on purpose.

Sales sells what they’re measured on.
Marketing promotes what drives conversions.
Product prioritizes the roadmap.
Engineering optimizes for stability and correctness.

None of this is malicious.
Everyone is doing exactly what they were asked to do.

The problem is that when each function is measured against a different version of success, the company quietly starts pulling itself apart.

That’s when you see:

• Product constantly reacting instead of building intentionally

• Engineering reworking code to support promises that were never aligned

• Customer Support managing frustration instead of solving root problems

• Leaders spending more time resolving tension than creating momentum

Not because people are failing — but because they’re running toward different finish lines.

What “working on the right things” actually means

Your team is working on the right things when everyone is optimizing toward the same outcome, even if their work looks different day to day.

It doesn’t mean:

• everyone does the same tasks

• every team has the same metrics

• priorities never change

It means:

• there is one shared goal that matters most right now

• each function understands how their work contributes to that goal

• tradeoffs are resolved by asking, “Does this move the shared outcome forward?”

When alignment is strong, execution gets lighter — not heavier.

A simple diagnostic you can use today

If you want a fast, honest signal, ask each team (or function):

“What does success look like this quarter?”

Then listen closely.

If the answers point to different outcomes — even if they’re loosely related — alignment is missing.

You don’t need more goals. You need fewer, clearer ones.

Where misalignment unintentionally creeps in

Misalignment often starts at the top, without anyone realizing it.

It happens when:

• goals are communicated vaguely

• incentives don’t reinforce the same outcome

• urgency replaces clarity

• teams are asked to “just move faster” without shared direction

Over time, people stop collaborating toward a goal and start protecting their lane.

That’s when friction shows up — quietly at first, then loudly.

A grounding check for founders

If you’re questioning whether your team is focused on the right things, pause and ask yourself:

• Have I clearly named the single most important outcome right now?

• Do our metrics reinforce that outcome — or compete with it?

• When priorities conflict, is there a clear tie-breaker everyone understands?

• Are we rewarding activity… or progress?

Alignment doesn’t come from more meetings or better tools. It comes from clear outcomes and shared accountability.

A useful perspective shift

You don’t fix alignment by micromanaging execution. You fix it by simplifying the finish line.

When everyone knows what winning looks like:

• decisions get easier

• tradeoffs become clearer

• teams trust each other more

• momentum compounds

That’s how you know your team is working on the right things — because they’re all running the same race, even if they’re running different legs.

A calmer way to move forward

If you’re feeling friction, confusion, or slowdown, that’s not a failure signal. It’s feedback.

Step back.
Name the shared outcome.
Make sure everyone sees how their work connects to it.

Alignment doesn’t just reduce tension — it restores forward motion.

And forward motion changes everything.