EP90: Accountability in Leadership [Part One]
IT’S TIME TO OWN IT!
Hold yourself accountable to get results (and inspire others).
Enjoy!
Listen Here:
(The notes below are only a brief summary of what is discussed in the podcast. Be sure to listen to get all of the goodness! If you would like a full transcription of the episode, please send an email request to: angie@angie-robinson.com. We’d be happy to provide that!)
Note: This topic is broken into two episodes / posts.
I recently facilitated a session about accountability with a group of senior level leaders. Accountability in leadership and in organizations is important for success. Yet – I find that it often has this connotation around it when talked about. There are probably several reasons for that – I’ll talk about that in just a bit. But first, let’s look at the actual definition of accountability:
an obligation or willingness to accept responsibility or to account for one's actions
a situation in which someone is responsible for things that happen and can give a satisfactory reason for them
Accountability is basically doing what you said you were going to do and also owning the results.
Accountability is important in leadership because it helps ensure that your team is working towards a common goal and that they are following through with their commitments. It instills a sense of trust and mutual respect among the leader and their team.
The responsibility of the leader when it comes to accountability is holding both yourself and others accountable. That is an ACTION.
What does it mean to hold yourself accountable? Simply put – it means doing what you said you will do - - - and owning those results. Owning what you accomplish, owning when you didn’t follow through on commitments, owning when you make mistakes. You are the person setting the tone for personal accountability and following through with consequences OR celebrating for yourself. And - leaders set the tone for the rest of the organization. By holding yourself accountable, you inspire everyone down the line to take responsibility for their actions and follow through on their commitments.
Holding others accountable is about providing the conditions for the employee / others to deliver on their commitments. It’s about making sure you are clear, provide support and follow through with consequences.
Holding Yourself Accountable
Self- accountability can also be a triggering topic.
Looking back on the definition - you can see that the act of accountability itself is not negative nor positive. It’s simply accepting that our actions have consequences, and the ball is in our court to create the results we desire.
What can get in the way is what you make it mean when you don’t follow through on what you said you were going to do or when you make mistakes,
Accountability can feel like pressure and judgement. It can force us to acknowledge our weaknesses or blind spots. It can push us out of our comfort zone and force us to make changes. What happens when we start to feel uncomfortable? Our brain kicks into ‘keeping us safe’ mode. Avoiding, reacting, resisting. That equates to an absence of accountability.
This is where awareness is so key. When there is a lack of follow through on your commitments – what are you making it mean about yourself? How willing are you to look at the why? How can you look at the discomfort as a gift? If you make a mistake – how can owning those results help you? What is the downside when you don’t own your results?
Let’s look at a couple of examples:
Example One:
You tell yourself you are going to get up at 5:30am three days this week to get a workout in before your day starts.
On day one – the alarm goes off and you decide you don’t want to get up and you sleep in for another hour. You didn’t follow through on your commitment to yourself.
What are some possible consequences of that if you don’t really OWN it – if you don’t really hold yourself accountable?
You didn’t get a workout.
You might erode some trust in yourself.
You might beat yourself up – feel like a failure – and give up for tomorrow. In fact – you might drown your shame in some extra donuts for breakfast or by scrolling social for a while before getting to work.
These are examples of your brain choosing to avoid accountability – to avoid ownership.
What might it look like to hold yourself accountable in this situation?
You might examine what was going on for you when you decided to hit snooze. From there you could decide if you liked your reasons or not.
You might choose a new thought for the next day if the same were to happen.
You might move your alarm clock ot the other side of the room.
You might rearrange your schedule so you can workout later in the day.
What you are NOT doing is beating yourself up. You’re not wallowing in failure. You’re not giving up.
Instead – you’re learning, adjusting, recommitting, moving forward.
Example Two:
Let’s say a team member approached you wanting to talk about something. They could have a problem or struggle at work – or maybe they want to talk about their own development.
You couldn’t meet at that time – but told them that you would get back to them by the end of the day to set up a time.
The end of the day came and went – and the next day, and the next day. You forgot to get back to the team member.
This might not seem like a big deal - - not catastrophic – but what is the consequence to you not doing what you said you were going to do?
Lack of trust.
The team member talking to others.
The team member feeling invisible and unimportant
Lack of productivity and engagement.
Maybe even lose the team member.
And if you choose not to OWN this situation – all of that just gets exasperated. You will lose your credibility as a leader – and I’m quite sure you’ll show up in ways that you don’t love moving forward.
What might be different if you held yourself accountable?
You would apologize.
The team member might feel valued and heard.
They may even be understanding.
You might implement a new process of reminder for yourself – like immediately putting a to-do in your phone or computer with an alert or a practice for team members to have access to your calendar to schedule.
That action of holding yourself accountable makes all the difference in how you will show up for yourself and others. And you can do it without viewing it as a shameful, negative thing.
Tips For Holding Yourself Accountable
Set clear goals and expectations for yourself. Be clear on your why and decide what you’ll do / how you’ll show up when your brain is giving you all the reasons you don’t want to. (I don’t want to get out of bed…I don’t want to have the conversation with the employee…I’m too busy to do that task that I told others I would do).
Be your own ‘accountability cop’. Regularly assess your own performance and commitments. Reflect on your decisions, actions, and the outcomes they produced. Be honest about areas where you fell short and identify opportunities for improvement. Ask yourself some questions:
What is the problem or where did I fall short?
What am I doing—or not doing—to contribute to the problem?
What will I do differently to course correct?
How will I be accountable for the result?
Be open to feedback. Encourage others around you to give you feedback and help hold you accountable. Again – do this from a clean place. If you are going to get defensive or beat yourself up – that won’t be helpful.
Set up systems and processes for yourself. Create habits and stick to them. If you make a mistake or veer a different direction – learn from it instead of giving up on it.
Own your mistakes. You are human. We all make mistakes. Examine what you are making mean about yourself. Process that and decide what else you can think.
Celebrate your successes and achievements! Again – accountability means following through on commitments and owning results. It’s not just about when we FAIL To do that. When you do follow through and when you do succeed in ways you intend – celebrate! Own that too!
Work with a mentor or a coach. They can help you identify what might be getting in your way if you are having trouble doing what you say you’re going to do and help develop some strategies to try. Most often – there is something going on with beliefs or mindset that you can’t even see yourself – so working with a coach can be an amazing way to get a whole new lens and create better results.
Remember – as a leader – leading by example is important. You need to model the behavior you want to see in others. But hold yourself accountable for YOURSELF first. When you do that – you will like how you show up, you’ll be more authentic in your leadership and you’ll have more compassion around accountability – especially for those you lead.
What do you think?
How would you rate your level of self-accountability on a scale of 1-10? What would need to happen to get it to a 10?
Links
Please leave a review in Apple Podcasts + share with a friend
It will help others find the podcast - the more leaders we can impact - the better our workplaces and lives will be!
Schedule a FREE Discovery Call
Click here to schedule some time - let’s talk about how we can work together through one-on-one coaching, Insights Discovery workshops or other leadership development work!