I talk about accountability a lot with my coaching clients and with the leaders I teach. We often discuss the importance of holding our teams accountable and creating a culture of accountability in our organizations, making sure people know what is expected of them, tracking performance, providing feedback on progress and following through on any rewards and consequences. This accountability is the only way we can make sure we are getting the results we want and need from our people. Unfortunately, holding others accountable isn’t really possible unless we are first holding ourselves accountable. This is one of the core components of self-leadership.
I recently finished a wonderful book called “Girl Wash Your Face” by Rachel Hollis (if you are a woman and haven’t read it, please put this on your list of must read, you can get it here). In one of the chapters the author talks about how we are really great at holding others accountable and even being accountable to others, but we often break the promises that we make to ourselves. If you are constantly breaking promises to yourself, you are not doing a great job of self-leadership. Think about it… what kind of example are you setting to your people, to your teams, if you aren’t holding yourself to at least the same standard as you hold others? What does it say about you if you tell people that it’s your policy to have one on ones every week and then you end up cancelling or moving almost every time? What message does it send if you tell people that you are going to delegate more and then continue to take on every project that comes through? People notice these patterns and they associate them with who you are as a leader. These actions undermine your credibility as a leader, they damage trust on a team and it can ultimately erode any respect your people have for you.
If you are struggling with accountability to yourself, you are in luck. Today I am sharing my top five tips for creating accountability in your life.
- Create small goals! A lot of times we get stuck on these big goals that are enormous shifts in the way we do things. Those goals are hugely overwhelming and they almost set us up for failure. You can still have those big, hairy, audacious goals, the trick is to break them down in to smaller, more realistic goals. Accomplishing a lot of your smaller goals will lead to you accomplishing the larger ones.
- Write it down! This is an oldie but a goodie. If you want to accomplish something or want to form a new habit, or just get stuff done, take the time to write it down. Writing it down makes it real and tangible rather than just an idea in your head. If you want to accomplish something, write your goals down, if you want to form a new habit, track each day that you do that action or if you want to get stuff done, create a to do list. Writing stuff down keeps it front of mind and helps keep you focused on the task at hand.
- Understand the WHY. I say this a lot, about a lot of things, but it really does make a difference. Understanding the Why or rather your WHY, behind whatever you are doing makes all the difference in the world. When you set out to accomplish something or create a new habit, there is usually a reason behind it. It’s usually a compelling one. Maybe you want to delegate more so that your people develop and grow and so that you don’t feel so burnt out all the time. That’s a compelling reason, however it’s SO easy for us to slip back into our old patterns and routines. So, if you feel yourself slipping back into old patterns, remember why you started in the first place. It’s often just enough to get you back on track.
- Review yourself regularly. As leaders, we have to complete periodic reviews for our employees to ensure that they are on track and understand what they are working for. As leaders, we can do the same thing for ourselves. Whether quarterly, semi-annually, or annually, make a habit of managing yourself by taking some time to perform a self-review. Ask yourself: What have I accomplished? How am I doing with my goals? What have I learned? What did I struggle with? What are my successes? This simple process can transform your productivity and success.
- Celebrate your wins and learn from your setbacks. When we start to hold ourselves more accountable, I have found that we tend to ignore all the progress we have made and beat ourselves up when we make a mistake. This ends up throwing us back into our old patterns because we focus on the setbacks rather than the lessons. When you get on a really great streak or accomplish a goal, don’t be in a hurry to move to the next thing. Take a moment to reflect and celebrate what you have accomplished. Remind yourself of all the hard work you have done. When you encounter a setback or make a mistake, don’t throw in the towel! Take a moment to acknowledge what happened and reflect on why it happened so that you can learn from it. Look at it like a gift rather than blunder you can’t recover from. We’re not perfect! Any action is better than staying stuck where you are.
Holding yourself accountable means that you do what you said you were going to do, that you accept responsibility for your actions and when problems arise you look for solutions rather than playing the blame game. As a leader, you have to hold yourself accountable first, before you can hold anyone else accountable. What steps can you take towards accountability in your life and work?
