063: The Secret to Driving Accountability

Driving accountability should not be thought of in the repressive, autocratic sense. Accountability is an EXTREMELY positive quality, that when fostered properly can be a powerful force that increases productivity and performance. People are motivated to take action for many different reasons, which we’ve discussed in previous episodes, but ordering tyrannical mandates is NOT ONE OF THEM!  It’s a LEADER’s job to clearly set expectations, to build a culture of accountability, and they layout a clear path to success while providing the right resources and support along the way. Communicating the IMPORTANCE of the mission is equally as important.  How succinct and concise the information a leader communicates is paramount in the fostering of accountability. When signaling mixed, confusing, and even conflicting messages, people become easily flustered and overwhelmed. It’s tough to hold people accountable when you’re throwing tons of unprioritized projects and tasks at them. Define which priorities are most important for you team to accomplish mission essential, don’t just give them a fully exhaustive to-do list. Accountability is the process of clearly assigning people to responsibilities w/ clearly defined outcomes. The act of being accountable isn’t just accepting blame, or admitting you made a mistake, that’s only half of the battle. Accountability is about acknowledging your shortcomings and then strategically and methodically following through! It’s not on any ONE member of the team to be accountable, it takes a VILLAGE!  You can shout, order, intimidate, threaten, question, beg and plead, piss and moan, all in the name of “holding people accountable.” Again, the truth is, NONE of that SH*T works. It’s violently counter-productive in terms of performance. Save the anger, let’s really learn the secrets of driving accountability today. Quote: "Accountability and self-responsibility are critical to our success in personal, professional and public life. However, we often look for those character traits in others, rather than inculcating them in ourselves." – Vishwas Chavan DON’T EXPECT ACCOUNTABILITY IF YOU AREN’T ACCOUNTABLE FOR YOUR OWN ACTIONS, PERFORMANCE AND RESULTS. I don’t think people pay enough attention to accountability, maybe it’s because it doesn’t have the same swagger as buzzwords like disruption, innovation, growth hacking and artificial intelligence . . .  Leaders can’t FORCE people to take extreme ownership and be responsible. Give support. Provide freedom. Share information. Provide resources. BE CLEAR. Lead by example, MODEL DESIRED BEHAVIOR. https://mruddo.com