Originally published as an article on LinkedIn.
Recently I coached a leadership team that struggles with accountability – keeping their word to each other and themselves.
They will say they are going to do something and then not do it – a busy week, a forgotten promise, or disorganization gets in the way.
As a result, distrust and lack of confidence in each other hinders this team from accomplishing their goals together.
I thought it would be helpful to these leaders to share my expectations of myself and of the people I work with – and how I keep these promises to myself and others.
What I expect from myself and people I work with:
1) Be accountable to your agreements.
Keep your word. When you say you will do something, map the action to your schedule so that you manage your time to do what you said you would. If something happens and you realize you will not be able to keep a commitment, contact the person you made the commitment to immediately and renegotiate the agreement.
2) Communicate your expectations clearly.
Ask questions to clarify and confirm agreement and expectations. Don’t assume you are on the same page and then behave as if someone has let you down when you did not communicate clearly upfront.
3) Do your best and be willing to learn from your experiences.
Track and share your progress, keep a learning journal, read something that inspires you every day, be emotionally intelligent and listen to yourself. Check in with your own emotions regularly; when you find yourself feeling sadness, envy, anger, or fear, process yourself through them by asking the right questions.
4) Believe others have good intentions.
When someone communicates differently or has different motivators than you, don’t take their behavior personally. Acknowledge that habitual emotional suffering, defensiveness, and resentment are signals you are not in a healthy relationship and you need to move on. The learning is to listen to, value, and stand up for yourself. Have good intentions for yourself and others will too.
In order to live these expectations, I commit to doing these 3 things also:
1) Intentionally Allocate Time
- Get 8 hours of rest every day.
- Allocate 8 hours to work, contributing, learning every day.
- Allocate 8 hours to your lifestyle and enjoyment every day.
There are three 8-hour periods in every day; for example, rest from 11pm-7am, work from 8am-5pm, and enjoy your chosen lifestyle (care for your body, cook, clean, socialize with people who are enjoyable to you, play) for 8 hours: 7-8am, lunch, and 5-11pm.
2) Plan, Then Act
During your 8 hours of work/contribution each day, use your Key Accountabilities as a guide to your priorities. Make commitments regarding how you will allocate your 8 hours of work daily and track your progress with the intention to grow, get better at your craft, improve something every day. Be accountable by reporting your progress to your boss, coach, or mentor as agreed with that person.
3) Evaluate, Review & Grow!
Your Coaching Challenge:
Use your Learning Journal to reflect on the following questions:
- What are my roles?
- What are my Key Accountabilities or expectations for each of the roles I play?
- Where do I consistently keep my agreements?
- Where am I off-track with my agreements?
- Would I like to work with a coach to clean up the gap and hold me accountable?
If you would like to take this deeper, join "The 24/7 Leader" coaching process and peer mastermind. To enroll, please contact us. For more support in your team's development, let's talk: 888-959-1188.