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Accountability. Good employees are accountable. Good leaders hold their employees accountable. Good organizations have accountable cultures. But what does it really mean to be accountable? And what happens when someone isn’t accountable? How leaders deal with non-accountable behavior goes a long way to defining the culture of an organization.

The generally accepted definition of being accountable is that “you do what you say you are going to do." Yet everyone will inevitably fail on this accord. Does that mean they are not accountable? I think it is when someone does not “do what they said they would do” that accountability is determined. Someone who is non-accountable will tend to make excuses, point fingers, deny, deflect or refuse to change. Accountable people will take responsibility for not delivering on the desired results and start doing something different until the desired results are achieved.

Wouldn’t life be great if everyone exhibited accountable behavior 100% of the time? As great as that idea sounds it is not realistic and leaders must decide what to do when one of their reports is not acting accountably. This action is generally known as holding someone accountable. To effectively hold someone accountable the leaders sets the foundation by setting clear expectations, contracting, incentivizing, and putting feedback mechanisms in place. If the employee does not deliver on the desired results and then doesn’t act accountably the leader has to step in and coach, reassess, train, or even (re)set consequences. Continued non-accountable behavior can lead to disciplinary actions and even termination.

But who really has the accountability during this process? Who is the one doing something different until the desired results are achieved? The leader! The whole notion of holding someone accountable is really a myth. When a leader says they are holding someone accountable what they are really saying that they are taking the accountability away from the individual. They are now the ones that are doing something different until the desired results are achieved. And if they don’t achieve the desired results their leader is going to do the same thing to them. This is called leader-led accountability and is the norm in most organizations.

There are two significant problems with this approach to managing accountability. Learn what they are in the full blog post>>

-Guest post from Eric Coryell, author of Revolutionize Teamwork

National Be a Millionaire Day (observed May 20th) is about taking steps to turn dreams into reality by making plans for your future. And what better way to get into the success mindset than with the modern-day bestselling classic, Think and Grow Rich! Author Napoleon Hill draws on stories from Andrew Carnegie, Thomas Edison, Henry Ford, and more than 500 other wealthy people to teach simple and practical techniques for achieving great and lasting success with nothing but thoughts, ideas, and organized plans.

Hill delves into a method for changing your desire for riches into its financial equivalent with these six steps:

FIRST. Fix in your mind the exact amount of money you desire. It is not sufficient merely to say, “I want plenty of money.” Be definite as to the amount.

SECOND. Determine exactly what you intend to give in return for the money you desire. (There is no such reality as “something for nothing.”)

THIRD. Establish a definite date when you intend to possess the money you desire.

FOURTH. Create a definite plan for carrying out your desire and begin at once, whether you are ready or not, to put this plan into action.

FIFTH. Write out a clear, concise statement of the amount of money you intend to acquire, name the time limit for its acquisition, state what you intend to give in return for the money, and describe clearly the plan through which you intend to accumulate it.

SIXTH. Read your written statement aloud, twice daily, once just before retiring at night and once after arising in the morning.

To delve deeper into these principals, download the FREE Discussion Guide>>

For more on transforming your desires into riches, read The Five Essential Principals of Think and Grow Rich>>

As Earth Day approaches, it’s time to get honest with ourselves; it’s time to HUG OUR MOTHERS — Earth and Nature, that is. We know enough and we know better, so the fact that we are still not doing enough is no longer a problem of pollution but a more personal problem. Our planet doesn’t pollute itself. That’s on us. And it’s time for us to choose kindness. Hugging Mother Earth and Mother Nature matters. So now it’s time to take action.

Action 1 – Participate in or organize a community cleanup day. Find ways to get local companies, schools, churches, friends, and family members to join in. Make it fun and a day for everyone to show kindness to our mothers.

Action 2 – Reduce! Of all the R’s—Reduce, Reuse, Recycle—reduce is the best option. Take shorter showers, print on both sides, carpool, change your sprinkler timers, etc. You know these ideas already. Now you just have to do them.

Action 3 – Be kind to animals.Take time to research how humans are impacting the different species from around the world—from dolphins to elephants to orang­utans to factory farm animals. Brace yourself. You won’t see a ton of kindness in your searches, but this is the very reason to get involved.

Matthew Emerzian

For more ways to live a life that matters, check out Every Monday Matters>>

Businesses love to brag about their customer service. As a consumer, think about a recent customer service experience you have had. Was it something you would brag about? According to Forbes, while 80% of companies believe they deliver “super experiences,” only 8% of customers agree. This outcome has cost businesses more than $75 billion per year! Providing great customer service should be the cornerstone of any company; and yet, studies have consistently shown that businesses are not delivering.

Great service requires both creativity and a willingness to change. Here are three stories that show what great service looks like and what it can do for your customers and your business.

1. Great Service Turns Customers into Raving Fans.

One day the ice maker in my mother’s refrigerator had a bad water leak. She called several appliance repair companies, but couldn’t get anyone to come out. Then she saw an ad that read “Same day service.” When she called, a friendly voice said, “We’d be happy to fix your refrigerator today, Mrs. Blanchard.” My mother was blown away. The polite repairman showed up later that day and fixed the leak at a reasonable cost. As he was leaving, he handed my happy mother a card and said, “Anytime you have a problem with this refrigerator, you give me a call.”

What do you think my mother was doing for the next three days? She was calling all her friends to tell them about the service she had received—and giving the man’s name and phone number to anyone who would listen. She had become a raving fan.

2. Great Service is a Choice.

My friend Harvey Mackay was waiting in line for a cab at the airport. When one pulled up, the first thing Harvey noticed was that it was polished to a bright shine. The smartly dressed cab driver jumped out, opened the back passenger door for Harvey, and said, “Hi! I’m Wally, your driver. While I’m loading your bags, please read my mission statement.” He handed Harvey a card that read:

Wally’s Mission Statement:
To get my customers to their destination in the quickest, safest,
and cheapest way possible in a friendly environment.

When Harvey sat down inside the cab, he noticed the inside was as spotlessly clean as the outside. “Would you like a cup of coffee? I have a thermos of regular and one of decaf,” said Wally as he slid into the driver’s seat. “If you’d like something to read, I have The Wall Street Journal, Time, and Sports Illustrated.” He then asked Harvey if he would like to have the air conditioning turned on, and offered to either tell Harvey about the city landmarks as they passed or, if he preferred, let him ride in silence.

Wally was phenomenal. He was running a limo service out of a taxi cab! I’ve probably told that story to more than 50 cab drivers over the years—but there were only two who took the idea and ran with it. And whenever I go to their cities, I give them a call.

3. Great Service Begins with Anyone.

When I travel, I often ask for a wake-up call. At most hotels, the call comes and you pick up the phone and nobody is there. Sometimes you get a recording. If you actually get a human being on the other end, you hardly know what to say.

So imagine my surprise when I was at a Marriott in Orlando and picked up the phone one morning and heard, “Good morning, Dr. Blanchard, this is Teresa. It’s seven o’clock! It’s going to be 75 degrees and beautiful in Orlando today—but your ticket says you’re leaving. Where are you going?”

Taken aback, I stammered, “I’m going to New York City.”

Teresa paused and then said, “Oh no! The weather map says it’s going to be 40 degrees and raining in New York City today! Can’t you stay?”

Now where do you think I want to stay when I go to Orlando?

I’ve said for years that if you don’t take care of your customers, somebody else is waiting, ready, and willing to do it. The best competitive edge for a business isn’t their product or their price. It’s how they treat their customers.

Take action: Brainstorm new and creative ways to give your customers a service experience they will remember fondly.

Shop The Simple Truths of Service>>

What are the top qualities that come to your mind when asked about traits of a woman you admire? Do you think kind, caring, and compassionate? How about tough, brave, and courageous? What about overall badass? Women encompass all these qualities and more. As March marks the month to honor women in history, it is also a great time to reflect on the women in our life. Whether she be a sibling, relative, co-worker, friend, boss, or mentor, there are women around us who help pave the path to our personal and professional success.

While women haven’t always been celebrated, significant strides have been made in the struggle for equality. Historical figures have worked tirelessly in industries like science, aerospace, mathematics, healthcare, and more to push open an otherwise closed door for generations to follow. Celebrate historical icons like Marie Curie, who was the only woman to receive two Nobel Prizes in her lifetime for both physics and chemistry and Loretta Lynch, who was the first African-American woman to hold the position of U.S. Attorney General. They and many other women have helped shape our world.

Get inspired by leaders, revolutionary icons, artists, scientists, entrepreneurs, and activists whose lives are worth remembering. Read their words for a daily surge of motivation or share their inspirational power with a loved one.

Kavita Wright, Sourcebooks employee

Discover Great Quotes from Great Women>>