1. Eliminating EXCUSES: Being Accountable for Your Own Success A Requirement for Life and Business Advancement Natalie B. Bryant, M.A. – SOM Director of Practice Development

3. New Year’s RESOLUTIONS

4. Accountability O To give an accounting of – To answer for  Your choices  Your actions  Your outcomes

5. The Price Paid for a Lack of Accountability O Wasted time covering your tail O Pointed fingers and blamed others O Felt powerless and out of control O Didn’t know what to do O Wasn’t personally vested O Ignored problems O Waited too late to act

6. What percentage of YOUR SUCCESS is up to YOU vs Outside Conditions? O Choices O Actions/Behaviors O Outcomes

7. 85%

8. Good News….. O Not just a Mind Set O Skill Set that can be LEARNED!

9. Three Step Process O Clarifying Responsibilities O Taking the Initiative O Owning the Outcome

10. Clarifying Responsibility O Role O Processes O Check List O WHO does WHAT? O Overlap? O Gaps?

11. Clarifying Responsibility O Manage Expectations  Ask questions  Make agreements  Clarify everything  What's expected of everyone including YOU!

12. Clarifying Responsibility O Recognize YOUR AUTHORITY  Know your power  If you don’t take care of YOUR responsibilities, someone else will.  Result – YOU are no longer needed.  Giving that power away only happens with your permission!

13. Taking the Initiative O Self Empowerment  Take Actions/Risks for desired outcome  Seek out available resources  Step outside your comfort zone  Find the motivation

14. Taking the Initiative O Responsibilities O Actions and Choices O Goals and Outcomes

15. Set SMART Goals O Specific O Measurable O Achievable O Relevant O Time - Bound

16. Taking the Initiative O Control YOUR time  Set Goals – Make a plan  Track projects and deadlines  Resist over-scheduling  Estimate realistic time commitments  “NO” is an empowering word

17. Owning the Outcome O Police Yourself  Hold yourself accountable  Don’t depend on others to do it  Don’t blame others or make excuses  Choose accountability, even if not caught by others!

18. Owning the Outcome O Tell the Truth  Everyone messes up  To lie/cover up – makes it worse  Honesty builds respect and trust

19. Owning the Outcome O When trouble arises, look at YOURSELF first.  What is the problem?  What are YOU doing/not doing that contributed to problem?  How can YOU solve the problem?

20. Learn from the Outcome O Be Accountable for results!  How will YOU handle failures  Analyze the outcome  Roses  Blossoms  Thorns

21. Do you have the COURAGE to examine YOUR PERSONAL ACCOUNTABILITY? O Quantify your perceptions O Quantify anonymously your superiors, colleagues, and subordinates perceptions O How do they compare?

22. Questionnaire Comparison

23. Benefits of Being Accountable O O O O O O O O O O O O

24. Three Step Process O Clarifying Responsibilities O Taking the Initiative O Owning the Outcome

25. Be SMART! O Make the commitment O Never require anyone else to hold YOU accountable O Take control of YOUR job and YOUR life!

26. New Year’s RESOLUTIONS

27. EXCUSES

28. Choose to be ACCOUNTABLE!

29. Bibliography & Suggested Reading O Barron, G & Crenshaw, J., Leadership Without Excuses: How to Create Accountability and High-Performance; McGraw Hill Publisher, 2012 O Connors, R., Hickman, C., Smith, Thomas & Tom, The OZ Principle: Getting Results Through Individual and Organizational Accountability; Prentice Hall Press, October 1998. O Galindo, Linda. The 85% Solution: How Personal Accountability Guarantees Success – No Nonsense, No Excuses; Jossey Bass Publications, October 2009. O Samuel, Mark. Making Yourself Indispensable: The Power of Personal Accountability ; Penguin Group (USA) Incorporated, April 2012