Accountability for All

Strong leaders gain the trust of their team by being accountable, responsible, and dependable. Being accountable means having the unwavering willingness to accept responsibility for one's actions.  However, as a leader you must not only be accountable for yourself but you must be willing to consistently and fairly hold all the team members accountable as well.

Good leadership is demonstrated by refusing to shift blame when problems arise, it means admitting when mistakes are made and taking steps to correct one's short comings.  Accountability also means supporting your team when things don't go as planned.  Singling out a scapegoat, "throwing a team member under the bus", will utterly destroy any semblance of teamwork and ruin any hope you have of leading effectively.  If the group knows you are there for them, they are much more likely to be there for you. 

Similarly your subordinates must be held accountable.  As the leader you must find effective methods for monitoring the teams status. Having this ability will allow you to monitor their progress from a distance and wisely choose the moments when your input is vital.  There must also be a steadfast willingness to hold people uniformly accountable.  Playing favorites, or even remotely giving the appearance of having unequal standards for different team members, will also dash a team upon the rocks and kill their chance of success. 

In this case it helps greatly to remember a few simple rules.

Don't allow the use of vague, unmeasurable words when discussing action plans.  Words and phrases such as "I'll try", "as soon as possible", "I'll do my best", and "by the end of the week" are unacceptable.  Lead with details, when reviewing performance and making plans, stick to details, not platitudes.  When discussing group actions look for the Who, What, Why, Where, When, and How's. Nobody should ever get off the hook, the plan should always include:

Who's responsible,

    What the goal is,

         Why its necessary,

             Where the activities take place,

                 And How it will be accomplished - the necessary steps

Its best to remember the great Yoda, "There is no try, do or do not".

It can't be much more straight forward than that.