Change the Way You Act

Posted on by Scott

weary-traveler-1631369_640Welcome back! I hope you had a merry Christmas full of family, friends, and good cheer. I’m actually enjoying a second round of Christmas this week. My parents flew into town last night and are spending the week with us. I anticipate a week of much needed rest before hitting the New Year in stride.

Speaking of the New Year, I promised to share my three personal challenges for 2017. I’ve already laid out the first two – changing the way I think and changing the way I talk, having provided specific ways in which I plan to address each of these goals. Today, I want to explain the third challenge I’ve decided to take on for 2017. It’s to change the way I act.

It’s easy to say you will change the way you think. After all, no one can read your mind and see the actual thoughts swirling around your brain. And it’s only slightly less difficult to change the way you talk. Despite the occasional slip of the tongue, choosing to say “the right thing” comes easy for a lot of us. After all, words are cheap, right?

But changing the way you act is something altogether different. It is through our actions that we are defined. I’ve known plenty of people who acted in ways that seemed remarkably different than the way they spoke. Many of us act in ways that run counter even to what we believe to be best. Actions can betray not only our words, but our thoughts as well. So I’ve chosen some specific ways in which to try and tame my own behavior.

I’m going to try and act with intention. I’m one of those people that like to say “yes.” I like being viewed as a go-to resource, someone who can get the job done. But saying “yes” too often gets a lot of people in trouble. Taking on too much can put you in a position where you’re running behind and trying to please a lot of others people while still trying to get your own work done. In the end, you wind up short-changing everything. No one project gets your best effort and no one, including yourself, is blown away by the result.

To combat this trend, I’m challenging myself to be more purposeful about my actions. When I take something on, I want it to be intentional. It needs to be something I believe in and will commit to owning. I want to execute. It may upset a few people that I have to say “no” to, but then they wouldn’t be happy with a lackluster effort anyway. I’ll be happier with myself having committed to only those projects I believe in.

I’m going to try and act with passion. Having ideally pared down the number of commitments I’ve made, I should be able to approach each one with a lot more gusto. You know that feeling you get when you’re working on something and just know deep down that you’re doing your best work? Time seems to slip away because you get caught up in doing the very best job you can. That’s the feeling I’m going to shoot for. I want work I can be proud of. That means I can’t allow myself to “dial it in.” If I’m in it, I’m in it to win it.

I’m going to try and act with focus. I can’t do my best work with a lot of distraction. Multi-tasking has been scientifically proven to reduce productivity, and I know it’s been killing me. So that’s got to stop. Likewise, interruptions pull me out of “the zone” and make it that much harder to get back in the swing of things. So I’m going to have to block out chunks of time to focus my energy on specific tasks knowing that the end result will be better having done so.

Now, I’ve shared my three personal challenges with you for a couple of reasons. Obviously, I feel this is a good practice and I want to encourage you to identify a couple of challenges for yourself. If I’ve hit a chord with my challenges, feel free to adopt them and join me on this quest. Regardless, write down specific things you want to improve on in 2017. I write mine on sticky notes and post them on my bathroom mirror as a daily reminder.

I also invite you to hold me accountable. Accountability is something of a lost art these days. People didn’t always feel so free to make promises knowing they could ignore them or weasel their way out at some point. I thinks that’s a shame. So, ask me from time to time how I’m holding up against my personal challenges. If you feel so bold, share your 2017 goals with me. I’ll be your accountability partner if you’ll be mine.

Let’s make 2017 the very best it can be. The New Year is blank canvas, just waiting for us to make our mark. What do you say we make it a great one?

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How to Keep Your Meetings (And Your Team) Moving Forward

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rails-253134_640Over the past few weeks, I’ve been writing on the topic of team meetings. This series of articles started with a review of 3 meetings you should stop having. That was followed by 4 meeting types that you should be having. I touched on 3 elements that make for a productive meeting, and then last week the focus was on using questions to prepare for a meeting – regardless of whether you are the meeting’s organizer or a participant.

Today, I’m wrapping up the series with a look at meeting effectiveness. How can you be sure your meeting actually helps move the team forward? That’s really the reason why we have meetings in the first place, isn’t it … to help move things along? If people are spending their time in a meeting rather than engaged in performing the actual job tasks they were hired to do, then the meeting ought to help improve the way they perform those tasks. For example, if my job is selling widgets, any time spent away from that specific task (like attending a meeting) should serve to make me a better widget sales person.

It’s critical that we start here. You have to understand that meetings are a disruption. They keep people from completing their core job responsibilities. I’m not saying meetings aren’t important; they absolutely are. But too many managers put more planning and energy into a meeting than they do the work our meetings are intended to support. We have to keep meetings in their proper place. The first and most critical step to better meetings is to view them as a vehicle that enables people to do their best work. When you start looking at meetings through this lens, the rest of your meeting-related decisions become much easier.

Starting with the belief that a meeting’s purpose is to improve the ability of people to perform, here are three ways to ensure the right things happen once the meeting is adjourned.

Expect active participation from everyone. Effective meetings do not have attendees, they have participants. If your meeting is considered a spectator sport, it’s time to clarify expectations. Active participation includes asking questions, taking notes, and sharing personal insights to improve everyone’s understanding of whatever topic is on the table. Active participation requires preparation, such as reviewing related material or completing pre-meeting assignments.

Active participation does not include looking at your phone, holding side conversations, or multi-tasking. These are signs that people are bored, uninterested, or simply disrespectful. If the meeting organizer has done their part to prepare an engaging agenda, then the rest of the team should honor that commitment by participating.

Focus on what’s important. Effective meetings stay focused. Inevitably, participants will bring up tangential topics. It’s like browsing the internet – you start off searching for something very specific, but get distracted by links to other topics that are somewhat related. Before you know it, your search for a good apple pie recipe has morphed into an hour-long review of bad plastic surgery pics. To keep your meeting on track, you have to recognize when things are getting off topic and step in before it goes too far.

Keep a running list of “parking lot” items; topics that come up, but aren’t germane to the core discussion. These can be tackled offline, or added to the next meeting’s agenda. I once worked with an organization that kept a small bell in the middle of the conference room table. Each participant in a meeting had permission to ring the bell when they felt a discussion was drifting too far off-topic. They then made a note on a white board so the related-but-separate concept wasn’t lost and pulled the team back on track.

Hold people accountable. Discussion of each agenda item should conclude with the assignment of next steps. If a topic doesn’t inherently require one or more specific actions, then it shouldn’t be on the agenda. Simply sharing general information shouldn’t be the focus of a meeting discussion – it should be an email. Remember, the purpose of a meeting is to enable participants to better perform their core job tasks.

If a topic is on your team’s meeting agenda, meaning it’s taking people away from their job, it’s because people need to start (or stop) doing something related to that job. End each meeting with a review of action items. Use this format to keep assignments clear: [Who] will [do what] by [when]. Start each subsequent meeting with a review of the action items from the prior one. Do this consistently, and hold people accountable for fulfilling their commitments.

Workplace meetings aren’t going away anytime soon. Most people consider them a necessary evil. Top teams see them as a critical way to stay focused, united, and moving in the right direction. How your meetings are perceived, and how productive they are, is up to you.

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Why Leaders Address Conflict Head-On

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leader-e1471893072992If there’s one aspect of the job that managers do their best to avoid, its conflict. Ideally, things would always run smoothly in the workplace. Each person would do their job, goals would be aligned, and differences would magically work themselves out. Unfortunately, that’s just not the case. In fact, one study found that the some managers spend up to a quarter of their time working to resolve conflict. That’s a lot of time devoted to an activity that’s simply not a lot of fun. Because conflict resolution is so mentally and emotionally draining, a lot of managers choose to ignore it. They simply look the other way.

It is a lot easier to pretend conflict doesn’t exist. I know several managers who are really good at it. They ignore the fact that key employees aren’t performing. They use deflection to convince others (and themselves) that the team’s poor performance isn’t really theirs to address. They talk a good game, but, like the Emperor parading around without clothes, there’s nothing of substance to see. They’ve mastered the art of conflict avoidance. But according to executive coaching firm Assiem, there are significant repercussions to ignoring conflict.

Ignoring conflict damages morale. Employees who perceive they are being treated differently aren’t happy campers. If you hold some accountable, but not others, moral suffers. If one manager does the right thing, but another doesn’t, morale suffers. It doesn’t matter what you say. It’s what you do that communicates. Ignoring conflict fuels the fire of employee dissention.

Ignoring conflict kills productivity. Top performers thrive in an environment where the leader addresses conflict. When others are allowed to get away with poor performance or bad behavior, those top performers see the disparity and lower their level of effort. Just as a chain is only as strong as its weakest link, your team will only rise to the level its lowest performer.

Ignoring conflict lowers customer service. Employees who feel supported and valued will support and value the customer. Those who feel abandoned will do the bare minimum and leave their customer feeling abandoned as well. It’s not uncommon for disgruntled employees to share their frustration with customers they trust. This leaks the issue outside the team, impacting the company’s reputation immeasurably. Even worse is when a customer witnesses first-hand a leader who fails to address an issue unfolding in front of them.

Ignoring conflict hurts retention. Left unaddressed, workplace conflict will drive some employees to leave. Usually, they are your best ones. They won’t announce their intention. They’ll just make up their minds that leadership has failed and look for another team – a better team – to join. One day, you’ll look up and they’ll be gone, leaving you with the low performers you’ve decided to tolerate.

Ignoring conflict impacts your credibility. Your employees talk about you. You know that, right? As the boss, you are in the spotlight. You are a constant subject of conversation amongst your team members, and your credibility rises and falls with each story they share. You can’t stop it, but you can determine the types of conversations they have. Are they sharing their pride in working for a manager who addresses issues, or are they discussing your latest failure to lead?[Tweet “Leaders acknowledge conflict and address it head-on. Ordinary managers don’t.”]

Conflict resolution is not fun, but it is a necessary and critical part of the manager’s job. It’s a key part of what turns a manager into a leader. Leaders acknowledge conflict and address it head-on. Ordinary managers don’t. Odds are, there’s a conflict brewing on your team right now. Name it, tackle it, and watch all of the negatives listed above turn into positives. Watch morale improve, productivity increase, service rise, retention woes reverse, and credibility grow. Choose the path less traveled. Choose to lead.

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3 Ways to Hold Yourself More Accountable

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achievement-1238472_640During a recent webinar series, I likened managers who avoid accountability to the leader in Hans Christian Anderson’s tale “The Emperor’s New Clothes.” In this story, two charlatans tell the emperor that they are master clothiers. They offer to make him a beautiful suit like none he has ever seen. Furthermore, they say, the cloth they use is so light and soft that it actually appears invisible to anyone not smart enough to appreciate its uniqueness. The emperor, unable to see the non-existent fabric himself, parades through the streets naked; attempting to ignore the murmuring of the crowd and trying to convince himself that everything is ok.

Accountability is a huge problem for many people, especially those in positions of authority. Many are uncomfortable with holding their teams accountable, so they avoid dealing with issues in the hope that they will resolve themselves on their own. Of course, they rarely do. Meanwhile, employees grow more and more frustrated with leaders who ignore the obvious, convinced they are doing the right thing.

For the past few weeks, I’ve been exploring various aspects of accountability. I’ve presented the concept of conducting a team health check to get a feel for how the members of your team feel about the state of accountability. Remember, top performers thrive in an environment of accountability. [Tweet “Top performers thrive in an environment of accountability.”]

Then I presented the concept of the “former performer.” These are people who once set the standard for performance, but some reason have turned into speedbumps for the organization. Rather than take control of their own performance, they have become victims of circumstance, always offering an excuse for their lack of forward progress.

Last week, I wrote about the methods teams use to hold themselves accountable. Winning teams never rely on a single star to pull them through. It takes everyone committing to the vision and expecting the best from themselves and those around them to win championships.

Today, I wrap up this series on accountability by offering three ways individuals can introduce more personal accountability. We all want to do our best work. We all want to achieve our fullest potential. But too many times, we fall short due to a lack of personal accountability. We may find it easy to push ourselves appropriately in a group setting, but left to our devices, it’s all too easy to let things slide.

I personally fall into this category. Despite my best intentions, I often find myself procrastinating. I put off important projects and wind up struggling to produce at the last minute. Sometimes this works to my advantage (I tend to have my best ideas under a time crunch), but it is always stressful and I never feel like the work I produce is my best. I need to be held accountable. So for those projects where I don’t have another person whose job it is to provide external accountability, I use these methods to create it.

  1. Find a partner. During my sophomore year of college, I enrolled in a weight lifting class. I felt that this would be a great way to get in shape and develop an exercise routine. Unfortunately, the only class available was at 7:00 am – and I am not a morning person. I soon skipped enough classes to earn a warning form the coach. Another classmate received the same warning and we decided to become workout partners. We agreed to hold each other accountable for making it to class and making up those we’d missed. By working together, we managed to pass the course. Finding someone who shares the same goals, and even the same struggles, is a great way to create partnerships that help you both succeed.
  2. Create a competition. I like to win. I’ve found that a little friendly competition is great way to push myself into completing tasks I otherwise wouldn’t. My kids and I used to do this all the time when it came to housework. None of us enjoy cleaning house, but staging a race to see who could get their dirty clothes to the laundry room fastest makes the job fun. During camping trips with our Boy Scout troop, I’ll offer a reward for the person who picks up the most trash around camp. We always leave the place cleaner than we found it. Try creating a mini-rivalry with someone else and use the spirit of competition to boost your accountability.
  3. Go public. One method that has worked for me many times is to announce my intentions publicly. When I set a personal goal to reach 10,000 daily steps for the first three months of this year, I told a lot of people I was setting that goal. I gave them permission to check on my progress at any time. I knew that keeping that goal to myself was an easy way to let myself off the hook should an obstacle come along. Because I knew others would be asking to see my results, I did what it took to reach the goal. There were nights when I could be found walking in circles around my yard or a hotel room in order to get the last few steps in before going to bed. Without that accountability, I know I would have given myself permission to fall short. Thanks to that accountability, my streak continues well past the initial three month goal.

Like so many aspects of leadership, accountability is a skill. Some may have a natural inclination for it, but we can all develop it. Those who choose to ignore this critical aspect of personal and team leadership, never fail to suffer. Like the emperor parading around in non-existent clothes they become the object of contempt and derision. But those who commit to accountability, both for themselves and their teams, enjoy the benefits that only come from top performers consistently giving their best.

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The Keys to a Winning Team

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basketball-1263000_640Last week the Golden State Warriors made history. They set a new NBA record for most games won in a season by finishing 73-9. Their accomplishment, which tops the Chicago Bulls 72 wins during the ’95-’96 season (something many said could never be done), is even more impressive when you consider they didn’t lose back-to-back games. After each defeat, they found a way to rebound and retool in order to secure another win.

The Warriors were already a strong team coming into this season. They finished with the league’s best regular season record last year (67-15) and the NBA title. But the best are never content. The players and staff knew they could be better this year and they set out to prove it.

Some will say the key to their success lies in Stephen Curry, their marquee player. And indeed, he is a force to be reckoned with. Last year’s MVP is by far the NBA’s best scorer, averaging 29.9 points per game. He set a new record for 3-point shots this season with 402. No one else even reached 300. But a single great player doesn’t make for a championship caliber team. Oh, they may carry the day here and there, but it takes more to achieve greatness with any kind of consistency. [Tweet “The best are never content.”]

Others may say coach Steve Kerr is the catalyst. He’s definitely brought something different to the franchise. He was a player for the Bulls the year they set the 72-win bar and won the title. He certainly knows what it takes to be a champion. But Kerr missed the half of the season, recovering from complications with an earlier back surgery. He wasn’t part of the Warriors’ 24-0 start, the league’s best since ’93-’94 when the Houston Rockets kicked off their season with 15 straight wins.

There’s no doubt that talent and strategy are critical components of a championship team. What sets the Warriors apart, though, is the high level of dedication each member displays to the team. When the season gets long, and individual games devolve into a grind, it’s the quality of the team that gets you through. Here are three qualities of top teams that win championships. [Tweet “When the season gets long it’s the quality of the team that gets you through.”]

  • A shared mission. It became apparent early in the season that the Warriors wanted to go for the record. At one point, Curry had this to say about the team’ mindset: “Obviously, going to win a championship, that’s the main goal. But there’s a reason we’re still talking about that…Bulls team…. They were on a mission that year and ended up winning the championship as well. So that’s kind of where we want to be.”

The team created the mission. The idea may have started with one person voicing an idea, but everyone bought into it. Once the regular season record became the focus, winning became the only thing that mattered. Conserving energy for a tougher game was no longer a consideration. Coasting once a playoff berth was secured didn’t enter the conversation. The shared goal became a belief and that belief became a reality.

  • A personal responsibility. Games often come down to a single play, a single shot. Any given player can find themselves in a position to secure the win, spur a run, or create an opportunity. Members of the team knew they had to be at their best every single night or risk letting the team down. Everyone felt the pressure, and welcomed it. That’s what winners do.

Take Curry for instance. He was already the top scorer. He already took more shots and made more three pointers than anyone else. It would have been very easy for him to look for the others to improve, secure in the knowledge that he was contributing more than his fair share. But he didn’t. Curry has one of the most intricate warm-up routines in the NBA. He pushed himself to better his game. The guy just doesn’t let up. And his teammates have responded in the same way. They know what Curry brings to the table, but rather than using that as an excuse to be less than the best, they use it as fuel to improve their own contribution to the team.

  • An accountability mindset. Accountability is all about communication. Teams that communicate regularly, and openly, create bonds centered on expectations of each member’s behavior. When expectations are met, trust builds. When members slack off, trust crumbles. Championship teams know that depending on your teammates to do their part is critical to winning. So accountability is not only desired, it becomes everyone’s job.

The Warriors are a team that talks to each other. They communicate on the court, in the locker-room, and during practice. Players even use an online group chat room to connect between games and during the off-season. According to player Draymond Green, communication often focuses on where to go for the post-game meal, but it’s also used to share opinions, listen to each other’s advice, and reinforce expectations. Being accountable to each other builds trust.

Championship teams are a lot of fun to watch. Heck, everyone loves a winner. But few seem to know what it takes to achieve this level. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver does. He said this after Golden State’s record-breaking night: “The team held itself to a high standard throughout the season, playing with purpose every night and captivating fans around the world.”

How does your team stack up? Do you have a shared mission? Does each individual feel a personal responsibility to do their best? Is every member held accountable by the leader and the rest of the team? Are you on track to a record season?

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Feet to the Fire: Keys to Personal Accountability

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andrew-mirror-e1452990922179By now, close to a third of all New Year’s resolutions have been abandoned. Think about that. Millions of people announced an intention to make some kind of significant change in 2016; and less than three weeks later have walked away from that commitment. Is it any wonder that more and more people have decided to stop making resolutions altogether?

I guess some figure it’s just too hard to keep their resolutions. Losing weight sounds like a great idea, but when you really think about it, losing weight is not easy. It requires changing the way you think. It requires changing the way you act. It requires developing new habits. And change is very, very difficult.

But isn’t that the point? Aren’t resolutions supposed to be hard? Shouldn’t meaningful change come at a cost? After all, if it was really that easy to make significant changes to your daily life, you’d have already done it, right? There’d be no need to set some kind of goal for improvement.

We make resolutions in good faith. We set goals for ourselves with the most sincere of intentions. So many attempts at change fail though because we just don’t hold ourselves accountable. Starting a new routine tomorrow sounds great, but when tomorrow comes – with all of its unexpected twists and turns – the road isn’t as easy as we thought it would be and we give ourselves permission to back off. How can we hold our feet to the fire so that the meaningful change we desire takes root?

Renew your commitment to yourself.

  • Remind yourself why you set the goal in the first place. There’s a reason you identified this goal. Something happened that caused you to decide things had to be different. Hold on to that thought. Hold on to the emotions that welled up inside you and led you to declare that, going forward, your life would be different. Let those feelings propel you through the toughest parts of your transformation.
  • Give yourself permission to let other things take a back seat. One of the most common reasons for abandoning new routines in our life is lack of time. Guess what? That’s an excuse – nothing more, nothing less. We all have the same amount of time every day. We just choose to allocate it differently. Someone once said “I don’t have time” is another way of saying “That’s not important.” If you want something bad enough, you won’t have to find time for it. You’ll make time. Learn to let lesser things slide in pursuit of your identified priorities.
  • Write it down. Post it. Look at it. Commit to your goal in writing. Tape it to the bathroom mirror, the refrigerator, or the television. Make sure you can’t go a single day without being reminded of the commitment you made to yourself.

Create systems to hold yourself accountable.

  • Schedule it. Remember the SMART Goal filter? Conducted properly, that exercise will provide you with specific action steps to accomplish your goal. Now take those steps and identify exactly when and where you are going to take them. Write them on your desk calendar. Enter them into your smartphone. What gets scheduled gets done.
  • Create reminders. Now go back and set reminders to yourself so appointments don’t sneak up on you and catch you off guard. Set an alarm each night to remind you to pack the gym bag. Put a post-it note on the door to remind you to grab your lunch. Use texts and emails to stay on top off your new commitments.
  • Partner with others. One of the best ways to hold yourself accountable is to hold someone else accountable at the same time. Find someone who shares the same goal and work together. They say misery loves company. I say success is better when shared, and a little competition is good for the soul. Anyone want a Fitbit buddy?

Ask for accountability.

  • Tell others what you are doing. This time next year, people are going to expect Mark Zuckerberg to have delivered on his personal challenge to build an artificial intelligence system for his home. He publicly announced his intentions, essentially asking others to hold him accountable. A goal kept secret is easy to walk away from, but a public declaration invites accountability.
  • Give others permission to ask for updates. Having announced your goal to others, ask them to challenge you. Beg them to do it now, while your resolve is firmest. Share with them why this is important to you and request that they periodically check on your progress.
  • Welcome consequences. I define accountability as the application of both truth and consequences. Define some milestones and associate rewards (positive consequences) with reaching them. Identify some negative consequences with failure. We are naturally drawn to things we want and move away from things we don’t want. Use this basic instinct to your advantage and ask friends to help keep you honest.

Personal accountability is easy when the task is easy. Persevering in the face of obstacles requires discipline. Ultimately, you have to decide how you want to perceive yourself. Are you a champion, or an also-ran? Champions hold themselves accountable. They do what has to be done. If you want to be a champion, then be one. Don’t think about it. Don’t hope for it. Don’t wait for it to happen to you. Just be a champion. Do the things champions do – every day.

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The Topic Managers Hate to Talk About

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imageThis week I’m in Austin meeting with a group of managers about a new training series I’ve developed for them and their employees. The goal of the series is to introduce some basic sales and service skills to an organization that has historically been very operationally-focused. Eleven frontline managers have agreed to participate in the pilot program and provide feedback on the material before rolling it out to the rest of the company.

Yesterday, we spent the day talking about performance management and the role of the manager in the development of an employee’s skill set. It was very fulfilling to see a group of people get excited about playing an active role in the growth of their team members. Everyone was engaged and the discussion was lively.

About half-way through the workshop though, the atmosphere in the room changed dramatically. A room full of enthusiastic, talkative people suddenly went silent; and it was my fault. I killed the mood by uttering a single word – “accountability.”

We’d started the day by talking about the unique role a person’s manager plays in their development. We spent a good deal of time talking about strategic planning, goal-setting and performance assessments against identified skills and behaviors. And then, after walking through a process for creating individual development plans, I said “it’s time to talk about accountability.”

Admittedly, I wasn’t surprised by the reluctance to discuss this topic. Accountability is a problem for most organizations. That’s because they feel like accountability is a negative thing. But the truth is, most employees feel better when an environment of accountability exists. It allows everyone to play by the same set of rules. It removes feelings of animosity and resentment that result from people being treated differently.

Managers dislike accountability because they equate it with confrontation. However, in the right context, accountability isn’t confrontational or even difficult. It occurs naturally.

I define accountability as the application of truth and consequences. When a manager commits to being honest with an employee about their behavior and applying natural consequences as a result of that behavior, accountability exists. Issues arise when the manager ignores the truth and/or fails to apply the appropriate consequence.

Consequences can be either positive or negative. Praise, for instance, is a positive consequence. Counseling and redirection are negative consequences.

We naturally move toward things that cause us positive feelings and away from those that cause negative ones. What happens when you praise someone for a job well done? They seek to recreate the positive feeling they received as a result of the praise and repeat the behavior. When you counsel someone regarding behavior contrary to what is desired, they feel uncomfortable and seek to avoid a repeat of the negative consequence.

So what happens when you fail to hold someone accountable for undesirable behavior? You get more of it. That’s because behavior that may be undesirable to you or the organization may be desirable to the employee. Inactivity, procrastination and producing sloppy work are undesirable behaviors, but they may be more desirable to the employee than the effort required to perform to expectations. In the absence of accountability – an honest appraisal coupled with an appropriate consequence – they seek to repeat the preferred behavior. So you get a repeated less-than-stellar results.

Anytime a manager tells me about a problem employee they have, one of the first things I tell them is “You will receive an abundance of what you praise or tolerate. You have to hold them accountable for their actions.” The keys to establishing a culture of accountability are as follows:

1. As soon as possible following the observed behavior, provide an honest assessment to the employee. Tell them want you observed and what was good or bad about it.

2. Apply an appropriate consequence. Praise/reward them for positive behavior. Correct/discipline them for undesirable behavior.

3. Make sure they walk away with an understanding of your expectation and support for continued (if desirable) or altered (if undesirable) behavior.

During yesterday’s workshop, I walked the managers through some simple ways to begin building a culture of accountability. As they became more comfortable with the idea of positive consequences as a balance to the negative aspect of accountability, the energy returned to the room. Pretty soon, we had segued into a discussion of recognition and incentives – two components of performance management that work best when a foundation of accountability exists.

As difficult as it is to discuss the topic of accountability, The hard part still lies ahead. They still have to follow through, but I’m looking forward to seeing what changes begin to take place as these leaders begin to address this important aspect of their role. Of course, I’ll be checking back in with them from time to time, just to hold them accountable.