Reviving the Culture of Accountability

be honest

have you stayed quiet while your brother

or sister was getting a scolding

regarding that

mysteriously cracked tea cup or that

scratch

on the new dining table did you fess up

or let your sibling suffer the wrath of

an angry parent some decisions that we

make

doesn’t always lead to positive outcomes

sometimes we make mistakes

the honorable thing to do is to fess up

and take responsibility for our actions

regardless of the consequences

right but what if you’re in a situation

where admitting to a mistake might be

more than just a slap on the wrist

would you still admit to it

i have sat in on meetings where

co-workers had remained quiet

letting the blame fall on someone else

for their mistakes

i have also witnessed managers

who never took responsibility for their

mistakes

and blamed their subordinates or peers

what is lacking in these co-workers and

managers

is what’s called accountability

accountability is the willingness to

accept responsibility

or account for one’s actions

usually if the action leads to a

positive outcome

with praise and rewards there are many

who would lay claim

to the action however if the outcome

results in

blame and reprimands not many

will volunteer to take accountability

in my experience there are three main

reasons

why individuals shy away from

accountability

one insecurities they lack the

confidence in their abilities to get the

job done

or feel that they do not deserve the

position

or the title that they have

[Music]

two fear by taking responsibility in

their actions or lack off

can lead to deductions in pay

being replaced or having to forego

professional growth opportunities

three pride by admitting that they’ve

made a mistake

reduces their credibility and

sometimes their respect this

usually increases with seniority

insecurities fears and pride are fueled

by workplaces that

have supervisors who misuse their

authority by

threatening or harassing employees

leadership who encourage tattling and a

loving favoritism

in their workplace leadership and hr

maintaining double standards by wavering

the accountability for certain employees

for disregarding policies and procedures

when such conditions produce lack of

accountability it

forms a toxic work environment

where backstabbing brown nosing

undercutting

become acceptable ways to get ahead

this creates factions distrust and

disloyalty

among employees and demoralizes them

usually this leads to high turnover

which we all know is never good news

these circumstances are due to weak

leadership one of the main qualities of

strong leadership

is integrity and the lack of

accountability

causes loss of integrity

if a culture of a company is shaped by

the actions and the character of its

leaders then having

accountable leaders will promote

accountability

within the company here are ways to

promote accountability

if you’re in a leadership position

reduce misuse of authority by

supervisors

by formalizing expectations

you do so by communicating clear

expectations for each employee

establish goals that are challenging but

attainable provide the authority and

flexibility for the employees to be able

to accomplish

those goals formalizing expectations

reduces misunderstandings and exposes

mismanagement offer training and support

monitor progress at specific

intervals identify areas preventing the

employees from successfully

meeting their goals offer training

and support to remedy the situation

this allows the employee to recognize

their shortcomings and allow

them to improve their performance

which in turn leads to them having

accountability

eliminate favoritism in the workplace

by formalizing employees appraisals

recognition and rewards this can be done

by treating

all employees equally without exceptions

award merits and demerits on their work

performance and not your personal

preference

doing so creates the opportunity for any

employee who is

qualified and has a good work ethic

to be recognized and rewarded for their

work

this may even increase diversity and

inclusion

in your company establish

company-wide standards and regulations

and hold all employees accountable

by carrying out disciplinary processes

when warranted

without bias this eliminates double

standards

and corruption this

list only works if the leader can

practice

what they preach in other words

lead by example all that being said

accountability should not only apply at

the leadership

level we are all

bearing the responsibility of holding

ourselves accountable for our actions

regardless of what we say or do

self-accountability is to be honest with

yourself

and answerable and responsible for what

you

say and do even when no one is watching

you’re probably saying that’s easy for

you to say

that’s because accountability doesn’t

always pay off

some of us might have fallen victim to

those who have used our accountability

against us

and some of you might have had severe

setbacks

because you took accountability so

why should we be accountable if it’s

neither easy or rewarding at times

because the lack of it in society

propagates

chaos so the question is

can we be accountable regardless of the

outcome

most of us with age and life experience

identify the difference between right

and wrong

and this develops a moral compass which

we can either choose to use

or ignore a person’s current state of

affairs

dictates the path we choose

like neo in matrix we have the power to

choose either the blue pill

or the red knowing that either of those

choices have consequences attached to

them

this is best emphasized in the peter

parker principle

a version of this principle can be

traced back to the french national

convention

of 1793 however the credit for

making this famous goes to stanley

the grand master of superheroes who

adapted the line

with great power comes great

responsibility into his spider-man comic

the greatest power we have in life

is the power to choose being confident

in

our choice reduces the insecurities

that’s

caused by doubt and when you’re in this

position of

great power to make a choice you have

the great responsibility

to allow your choice to be governed by

your moral compass

in other words your principles

personal gain and other selfish reasons

should not be excuses for choosing to do

the wrong thing

by prioritizing your principles you

mitigate the fears associated with

reprimands

once you’ve reduced your insecurities

and made your choice

with confidence and you’re willing to

hold yourself

accountable for the result of your

decision

by mitigating your fears there’s still a

chance

that the end result might be a mistake

your choice may yield negative results

despite your best intentions

it is at this point that you have to put

your

pride aside and admit that you were

wrong and apologize for your actions

sometimes you have to be humble and

ask for help in remedying the situation

you have to work hard at reducing

insecurities fears and pride

to be accountable there are times that

you will not be

able to live up to these standards

but if you become successful

at developing the trait of

accountability

then you gain ownership of the results

of your actions because of this

ownership

you tend to be more mindful of your

actions and your speech

this in turn reduces mistakes you make

people who are mindful and making less

mistakes

reduces chaos these days

i find myself in my parents shoes

interrogating my own kids about the

mishaps around the house

and my parents take the pleasure in

pointing out

that the apple doesn’t fall far from the

tree

as a parent i am more conscious of my

decisions

as i do not want to be a hypocrite who

expects

my children to have integrity if i do

not

accountability is a great burden we bear

as adults and it’s especially essential

for those in authority

i strive to be accountable for my

decisions

and actions as a mother

a colleague a friend and

a person and i wish

you all the strength to do the same