Accountability – YES, it is right for you!

Accountability sometimes has a negative connotation – it gives people the heebie-jeebies to think that someone else will be able to hold their feet to the fire.

At its core accountability is an obligation or a willingness to accept full responsibility for one’s actions, good or bad. To answer for any shortcomings or failures, but also to revel in and celebrate the wins!

Therein lies the first problem – our egos! We have to leave our egos behind and take constructive criticism, advice, and direction from others. We have to be willing to let them see our failures alongside our wins and push us to move past them and try again.

NBG is all about personal and professional growth – which includes accountability… and it won’t happen by chance or fate. It is intentional, purposeful, and of the utmost importance in growing a business.

But many people don’t truly understand what it is, why it is important, where to start, or how it works.

Let’s explore that…

What is it? 

Simply put, accountability is setting some measurements by which you can assess your actions, letting someone else know about those intentions, and allowing them to keep you focused on those and not veer off path.

Why is it important?

We can change, reduce, increase, or even obliterate goals and actions if they are only internal and no one else knows about them. We are GREAT at justifying our actions to ourselves.

But when we have to explain or defend our actions to someone else we see the inconsistencies and (because we all want positive recognition) we work towards reaching the measurements we set for actions. We don’t want to fall short in someone else’s eyes.

Oftentimes we cling to our excuses and our procrastination to avoid possible failure or an unexpected outcome. We don’t even see or recognize that we are doing it! The easiest person to lie to is yourself – and we often do – in order to stay comfortable and not step out of our “safety-zone”. This can be difficult to overcome because we typically have no idea we are doing it, justifying it to ourselves. 

Not having only family or close friends as part of your accountability group is important because familiarity often breeds blindness, inaction, and acceptance. Having others that are detached from you and your personal life helps them to see more clearly, not accept inaction, bad attitude, closed mindedness, or failure to give your best in order to achieve.

Where to start…

Accountability is nothing new – you KNOW what it is and why you need it (if you didn’t before, you do now). But knowing and doing are two completely different things. You have to intentionally create and dedicate yourself (and some time) to an accountability structure.

1. Find at least 2 others that want to participate in holding each other accountable
2. Create a spreadsheet or other way to list your action items, etc. so all can see
3. Define the timeline and structure you will use
4. Commit to being open, honest, non-defensive, and a no-excuses environment with each other

When you place your items on the spreadsheet make sure they have action verbs followed by performance indicators. In other words, what are you trying to accomplish, how do you plan on getting there, and when do you need to have this accomplished? Include tasks that will help you move forward in your business, not just items from your To-Do list.

Most important – Put your ego aside, it may be in the way of your progress, and don’t go it alone.

Primarily the Group is for encouragement, celebration and support. But, there may be a time when others may  ‘call you out’ on your procrastination or excuses. Every once in a while we all need a good kick in the pants!

How it works…we can help!

We are ready to make all of that easier for you! Network Build Grow has added a new Accountability Lab Forum for members. 

Start here – subscribe to the Accountability Lab Forum. Put the events on your calendar (1st and 3rd Wednesdays of each month at 9:30 am) and commit to attending.

Twice a month we will come together (on a Zoom call) and lay forth our action items we want to be held accountable for. We will spend the first few minutes of the call helping each other out. Ideas to move forward, implement, create space to get things done.

Immediately following this quick chat we will stay on the call and have a ‘working zoom session’. We mute ourselves and get work done. We challenge you to be purposeful with this time and reserve it for a task that will help you elevate your business. 

Enter your top 3 weekly tasks in the Accountability Lab dynamic spreadsheet – what you are willing to have others see and help you with. Add those items to the Spreadsheet inside the Forum.

We want to celebrate those consistently putting in the work to elevate their business! Progress will be tracked quarterly with the individual with the most completed tasks in a quarter winning a prize.

Simply by committing to 3 hours a month you will see a dramatic increase in crossing off many items on your action list! And ANY time you do that you will see an increase in your productivity, your effectiveness, and even your bottom line.