Holding Oneself Accountable

Accountability...the word seems to hold such negative connotations. I remember conversations with my manager from my days at Microsoft. When I opted to take a risk or take on an extra project it was then followed by "Fine - but YOU'RE accountable." Those words translated to "It's on your lap if anything goes wrong." Or "Who's accountable for this??" which translates to "Who's fault is this?" But how often do we hear "Great work! Who's accountable?" No wonder the word holds negative connotations.

Yet personal accountability is one of the fine lines that separates a true leader from a manager. I think some very rare individuals seem to have high degrees of personal accoutability. They hold themselves to a high standard and never seem to lower the bar. But those folks are few and far between. What about the rest of us that set a reasonably high bar for ourselves, but can also convince ourselves that we're close enough to that number or we've almost given that project our all. We're the same ones that go to the gym for a one hour work out and then convince ourselves that 30 minutes is good enough!

Does this gracious attitude with oursevles mean that we can never be great leaders? I don't think so. But what it does mean is that we need to be smart enough to recognize our shortcoming and find ways of holding ourselves accountable in spite of ourselves. Some leaders need only to write down and post the things that they are holding themselves accountable for. Some great leaders use executive coaches. Others have peers/partners that they can confide in that will hold them accountable. Some join peer-to-peer CEO groups such as Excel CEO, The Alternative Board or The Executive Commitee. But whatever route you take, accountability is the fine line between someone who can never quite get their company to the next level versus someone that can consistently meet the metrics that they hold for themselves and their companies.

Good Luck! I'm off to the gym (with a trainer)!