Accountability: Does It Make You Cringe?

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• Accountability
• What Does It Really Mean?

Donna Price Debora McLaughlin
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Dont Run!

• Accountability isnt a word to run from
• But rather it is a concept to embrace.

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Does it make you think of keeping score?

• Well, for many that is exactly what happens. 
  They cringe, they avoid, they walk away. 
• But really, we all want people that are
  accountable in our lives and in our businesses.

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What does it mean? 

• Accountability is taking responsibility for what
  you say you are going to do.  It means following
  through.  But first there are some things that
  have to happen in order for accountability to be
  all that it is cracked up to be. 

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First, there have to be clear goals and
expectations.

•  When you have a clearly stated, measurable goal
  that you as the person responsible understands,
  then you take that goal on and take
  responsibility for it.  When goals are unclear or
  wishy, washy it is impossible to be responsible
  for the goal but it is not trackable or
  measurable. 

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Examples

• For instance, if you have a business goal of
  improving the workplace for staff it is a totally
  subjective and wide open goal.  It is open for
  interpretation and can look like many different
  things. What it means to you can be totally
  different from what it means for your peers or
  your boss or the owner of the company.  Before
  you take one more step into action, you need
  clarity. 

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Clarity

• A more clearly stated goal that you could
  actually implement might be  to improve the
  workplace by providing consistent, daily duty
  free lunch breaks.  Now you can create a strategy
  for implementing this.  You know that you have to
  create a schedule, figure out how to free people
  up and then you can implement. 

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Improve

• But the goal could also mean, improve the
  workplace by creating an action plan for each
  staff member with measurable goals, clearly
  outlined actions and weekly review meetings. This
  too, is measurable and actionable.  But there
  might still be questions that you have as you
  start to implement.

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That is part of your accountability
responsibility

• Gaining clarity at the beginning of
  implementation and throughout. 
• When a new question comes up, ask. 
• Ask for clarity. 
• A workplace that encourages accountability and
  expects it is one that also knows that there must
  be room for ongoing communication about goals and
  responsibilities. 

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Staff must know from leaders that they are
allowed and expected to ask for further
clarification

• and that it in no way means that they are not
  being responsible or accountable.  Actually, it
  means just the opposite.  That they are!

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Leaders must lead the way to accountability and
responsibly

• by themselves showing that they are open to
  questions, open to providing answers and they
  too, at times, will need to ask for clarification
  or more information in order to be accountable
  themselves.

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Accountability becomes a cultural norm

• within the workplace when individuals are given
  the space to take on responsibility and to expect
  clear communications about each task.

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To Learn More About Accountability Visit

• http//www.realworldleadersinstitute.com/events/ac
  countability-experience

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Copyright 2011 Real World Leaders
InstituteDonna Price Debora McLaughlin