A founder inbox contains more than messages
A founder inbox contains more than messages. It holds implied introductions, promised reviews, informal follow-ups, and statements that another person may reasonably treat as a commitment. Search flags and unread counts do not show that obligation clearly. A promise register is a narrow companion record for commitments that need a future action. It should capture the original wording, recipient, expected outcome, responsible date, current owner, and a link to the source. It is not a second inbox and should not absorb routine correspondence.
Define admission rules with the founder
Define admission rules with the founder. Direct promises belong in the register. Possible ideas, sales language, and requests the founder has not accepted should remain requests. When wording is ambiguous, the assistant can flag it for clarification and acknowledge the sender only within agreed response authority. Preserve qualifiers such as “after the board meeting” or “if finance confirms.” Removing them can turn a conditional statement into an unconditional commitment. Confidential messages stay in approved systems; the register can use a restricted pointer instead of copying sensitive text.
Review the register at a cadence that matches consequence
Review the register at a cadence that matches consequence. Sort first by the date when the recipient needs an honest update, not only by the ideal completion date. Present overdue or conflicting promises with options and capacity implications. The founder chooses which business commitments change. Support may draft updates, schedule work, and close items after evidence is recorded, but it should not silently downgrade a promise or tell a stakeholder that work is complete when only an internal task was checked off.
Once a month, inspect how promises enter and leave the system
Once a month, inspect how promises enter and leave the system. Repeated commitments of the same kind may deserve a reusable intake path or delegated rule. A high count can reflect a busy launch, while a low count can mean promises are being missed. Sample the source messages and compare them with the record. The practice is useful when recipients receive timely, accurate follow-through and the founder sees the real capacity cost of informal commitments before making more of them.
Frequently asked questions
Is a promise register a task list?
No. It records externally meaningful commitments and their evidence; routine internal tasks can remain in the normal work system.
Can support renegotiate a promise?
Only within explicit authority. Otherwise support should prepare the context and route the change to the founder.
Ready to define the role?
Use a recent leadership week to scope the support that would make the biggest difference. The consultation is a working conversation, not a generic pitch.
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