Skip to main content

High Performance Leaders Are Accountable

My friend and fraternity brother David Spiegal operates a variety of businesses, models success in many ways, helps people become healthier and happier, and more -- all while being a loving family figure and man of faith.

Occasionally, I'll like one of his daily emails so much that I publish it here, word for word. I'm doing that today because, well, it's thought-provoking AND he refers to me in it. (My humble response follows his article as a comment.)

Here's Dave...

"Leadership is not a license to do less; it is a responsibility to do more."
-Simon Sinek-Leaders Eat Last 
September Word of the Month:
ACCOUNTABILITY

Yesterday was a really great day. The weather was pleasant and I found myself in a really fantastic mood. At one point I was singing along with one of my favorite songs on the radio. I don't mean singing like following a long. I mean belting it out as if I were a finalist on America's Got Talent.
I made some long over due phone calls.
I cleaned up a multitude of emails and tidbits that were cluttering my desk.
Like I said, it was a really great day.
Today when I awoke the skies were even brighter than yesterday. So why if that's the case am I in such a dower mood on the the first day of September and another How Am I Doin' Friday?
It has a lot to do with the September word of the month, accountability.
Like any one else, I come in contact with and have to deal with a lot of different people.
Each and every one of them have their own idiosyncrasies.
Some may call them quirks or peculiarities.
That's what makes us individuals not automatons.
We recognize them and for the most part we deal with them to the best of our abilities.
Some times these "quirks" become a bit much.
They create an uncomfortable environment for those who have to deal with them.
For years now it has been the "in" way of being to "just be me".
Accept me as I am is the norm of the day.
Much like the attitude that spawned Gordon Gecko's famous line from the movie Wall Street "Greed is Good", bad behavior disguised as "well it's just my way" has become the accepted practice.
Let me fill you in on a little secret.
Greed is not good.
Neither is bad behavior disguised as quirkiness.
We have a responsibility when we interact with others.
I get the whole "I have to be true to myself" stuff.
However,if me being me is just flat out weird, then maybe me should go live in the woods by myself.
When others are effected by my idiosyncratic behavior, I have the responsibility of curbing my quirkiness while working in and around them.
ACCOUNTABILITY
How do my actions effect those around me?
Did I leave a mess on the table I just ate at at the fast food restaurant?
Did I flush the toilet after I used it?
Did I put the seat down?
These are small examples of personal accountability.
It comes along with common decency.
If others are depending on me to do something, it's Nike time.
Just Do It!
Simply saying "oops , I forgot, but hey that's just how I am" does not cut it.
My friend and colleague Doug Smith who coaches companies around leadership and team work may have some insight into dealing with this "accept me as I am" modality that permeates today's world and maybe he can shed some light on it for me.
Maybe I'm just old fashioned.
I hold open doors for people ...all people not just pretty women.
I say please and thank you and good morning and yes I even smile at people.
And most importantly, if it is my responsibility to get something done. particularly when it may effect others, I make sure it gets done.
ACCOUNTABILITY!
If getting something done is your responsibility, hold yourself accountable and make sure that it gets done!
Shabbat Shalom! 
David Spiegel




key words:

Comments

  1. Doug SmithSeptember 2, 2017 at 1:17 PM

    David,
    Interesting article, and thanks for tossing the question my way!

    Accountability is essential. And, while individualism is a spice that makes creativity more lively, it does not give leaders (or anyone else) any right to overlook the rights and needs of others. A leader's first task is to serve. To find a need and fill it, influencing others along the way to contribute.

    Forgetting is never an excuse. In fact, high performance, centered leaders do not make excuses. Here's the trouble with excuses: they do not accomplish anything AND no one believes them. All an excuse does is put a scar on whatever trust exists.

    We all make mistakes. We all require forgiveness. But making excuses (especially lame ones) implies permission to keep being sloppy with those mistakes. No such permission exists.

    Thanks for again generating great ideas!




    Doug Smith

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Learn To Build A Better Tomorrow

Do you have all the answers yet? Are you finished learning? Of course not. Learning is a lifetime necessity, especially for leaders. Centered leaders learn constantly and apply what they learn to make things better. To solve problems. To achieve their goals. What we learn today can bring about a better tomorrow.  Isn't that what you want, a better tomorrow? It can happen, but it's up to each of us. What will you do? What will you learn? What have you learned today? -- Doug Smith Front Range Leadership:  Training Supervisors for Success doug smith training:  how to achieve your goals
Post a Comment
Read more

Stop Running From Your Solution

Why do we run away from the answer? Sometimes it's right there in front of us - the solution to our problem, and yet we turn away. It's a bad habit and one that keeps us from finding what we're looking for when it comes to solving a problem. The solution to your problem is looking for you -- you just need to stop running. Can you hear those footsteps? -- Doug Smith Front Range Leadership:  High performance leadership training doug smith training:  how to achieve your goals
Post a Comment
Read more

The Essential Question

The essential question is "How can I help?" Whether you are the leader of thousands or completely on your own, your role on this planet is to help, to make things better. Usually, that means helping other people. Kings, rulers, athletes, artists, government officials, doctors, fire fighters, deli workers, mechanics, economists...we are all here to help. Sometimes it doesn't feel that way. Sometimes we feel the need to be served instead. But whatever the situation, no matter what the organization, high performance leaders know that their role is to help. Reflection Questions How can you be most helpful? What situations are you facing right now where you have not yet asked the question, "how can I help?" Who do you remember the most for being ready to jump in and find a way to help? How did they make you feel? How engaged and happy did they seem to be? Action Plan Within the next 24 hours, find a situation and ask yourself "how can I help?" ... and then...
Post a Comment
Read more

High Performance Leaders Deal With Anger

What do you do when someone in your range of influence is angry? It can be discomforting. It can be disruptive. Anger is tough to handle under the best of circumstances. And yet, handle it we must. Centered, high performance leaders are careful about anger. Careful about their own anger and careful about their reactions to the anger of others. I had a boss once (a very long time ago) who told me that I had a problem with anger. That made me angry. The reaction to anger is sometimes defensiveness, sometimes fear, and sometimes (surprise!) more anger. Whatever our reaction, our bodies are usually poised for action. What we do in that moment of activation is critical to our success. If our life or emotional well-being is being threatened, that steers our direction. But usually, although it feels that way, we are not actually under any threat. So we must deal with anger productively. We must say what we want without blaming others for it not being there. We must listen with cur...
Post a Comment
Read more

Explore Perspectives

When you find yourself locked in conflict, suspend your competitive edge long enough to discover what people in the conflict really want. For many of us, the natural reaction to conflict is to become more competitive. We prepare ourselves to fight to the finish and behave as if victory must be one sided (and of course, must be ours alone). As Doctors Thomas and Kilmann have pointed out in their influential work on conflict, we have more choices than that. We can always choose to compete if necessary. But first, what if there's an opportunity to build relationships? What if there's an opportunity to collaborate? Isn't it worth taking a moment to step back and find out? Breathe. Relax. Look at the situation from a more impartial distance. Ask meaningful questions with genuine curiosity and an open mind. It's that important. -- Doug Smith http://frontrangeleadership.com For a useful Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Modes Instrument in PDF form: http://www....
Post a Comment
Read more

Work To Be Done

Many years ago when I was music director and touring with Child's Play Touring Theater we were putting together a show for children with a work-related theme. Children are often fascinated by jobs, by what their parents do, by what they see adults doing in the world. It was just one of hundreds of shows that we did, but I remember one song from that show that I wrote especially. The first verse was: there's a little bit of work to be done an American phenomenon there will always be a little bit of work to be done to be done, to be done, by everyone... I can't take credit for the lyrics because we used poems and stories written by children as the basis for our material. It was fun. And it reminds me today that what was true then is still true today. There's a little bit of work to be done. We have problems to solve. We have goals to achieve. High performance leaders are never finished. Even as I near retirement age (don't fret, my bills will keep ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Wake Up Call

The phone rings. It's darker than usual. Who would be calling now? You stumble to find the source of the ring. That's not even what your phone sounds like. You pick up the receiver. No one's there. It's your wake up call. Now you remember: you're away from home. There's work to be done, and you did ask for this reminder to rise up early and to get started on your goals. Wake up calls are sometimes disorienting. They can take us by surprise, even when we expect them. How does that make sense? Examine your history of wake up calls and look for patterns. The patterns are likely there. What is your wake up call? What have you put in place to get you going, to get you oving in a strange place, at an unusual time? We live in unusual times but hasn't that always been the case? What do we have to prevent us from slipping into a muddled routine accepting everything and leaving our own assumptions untested? What can rattle our cage? We need wake up...
Post a Comment
Read more

Listen With Your Heart, Decide With Your Mind

How do you like to make decisions? I'm a fact-based guy who likes to keep the emotions out of the decision, so there's my bias. Some people are emotions based deciders and don't like the facts to get in the way. What if we considered both the heart and the mind? I'm learning to listen better, with my heart. To hear what is really going on and not just what I think I hear through my heavy filters. Sure, one of those filters is my heart, or how I feel. That requires a certain mindfulness to be able to discern which emotions am I bringing to the decisions apart from which emotions is the decision bringing about. Yes, there is a difference. By finding a place of center, of neutral feeling, we can hear what emotions are going on within the choices. We can better discover possibilities if we refrain from judging them for a while. We can better understand the full picture if we listen with a heart that's open. If you want to supervise for success, listen with your ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Feelings Count

Facts matter. We should pay attention to data. And, we should remember that data isn't the whole game. Data is a poor indicator of feelings.  Feelings matter. People will believe that they matter when leaders show them that their feelings matter. That's not always easy and it can even be counter-intuitive if you're an analytical sort like me, but it is necessary. Facts matter. Feelings matter. And, more often than we might care to admit, people decide based on how they feel. How do you feel about that? -- doug smith
Post a Comment
Read more