Accountability is one of those words that this generation is allergic to. Unfortunately nobody goes far in life without it. In every field of human endeavor the ones who excel are the ones who are held accountable and who hold themselves accountable. If you say I don’t want to be held accountable what you say is that you want to make your own rules and play by your own rules without being answerable to anybody. That is a prescription for premature death, literally and figuratively speaking.
First, define your vision , then identify your mission which is what you need to do in order to turn your vision from a dream to a reality. Do not forget to allocate time to those tasks. Then go to work, giving it your best shot. If you don’t know where you are going you will never get there and even if you get there by chance, you will not know when you got there. Some people tell you “I want to be a millionaire when I grow up”. But they have no idea what they need to do to become. That is called mere wishful thinking. Unless you know and actually do what you need to do, you will die poor. Even if you have to win lottery you have to play first before you can have a chance.
Audit is necessary. At intervals you need to call yourself to a meeting. You have to challenge what you are doing and troubleshoot it. Unless you can convince yourself that what you are doing is effective and that there is no more efficient way to do it and get the same or better result, then you have not really audited yourself, and you can not convince someone else that you know what you are doing.
Accountability is seen in your daily routines. What time are you supposed to be at work? What time do you actually come to and leave from work. What tasks are you supposed to complete and what percentage of those do you actually complete as and when due? If someone else working for you has the same exact attitude to work, tasks, chores etc as you have, would you write him up or coach him for improvement? If you were to rate yourself and let’s assume for a minute that you are the boss and yourself the employee, would you rate yourself as development needed or would you rate yourself expectation exceeded?
At the end of the day or week or month do you reflect on the activities of the day, week or month; what you did and what you didn’t do; what you said and how you could have better say it; situations that arose and how it could impact your business and what you need to do to mitigate negative impressions etc. The processes of self auditing, reflection and assessment are what make the entrepreneur leader a person of purpose. Accountability is a necessity. Whether you are a student, teacher, doctor, nurse, carpenter whatever it doesn’t matter. The same principles apply.
Finally, don’t forget to reward yourself if you exceed expectations. I will let you decide what will be a good reward that will motivate you to do even better. Treat yourself as your employee and make yourself feel like it didn’t make mistake coming to work for you. Do not muzzle the ox that threshes the corn. Think about them and be safe this corona virus season. Love and Peace.
@Mezie Okolo, Public Health and Leadership Analyst
03/21/2020