Managers should stop praising employees for rescuing projects and start rewarding the work that prevents crises: early detection, clear structure, stopping escalation before it happens. The language you use shapes what your team optimizes for.
Instead of saying, "Hey, thanks for jumping in to save that," say, "Hey, I appreciate how you caught that issue early and prevented escalation of that issue." That's a completely different signal. Or instead of, "Hey, thanks for always being available," don't say that. Say, "I appreciate how clearly you structured this so the team could move without constant clarification." You get my point. Now you're reinforcing systems, not rescue.
