How to Be More Accountable

This is the last part of the article on Responsibility and Accountability at work.

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Personal accountability isn’t a trait that people are born with, it’s a way of living that you can learn. Use the strategies below to become more accountable.

• Know Your Role

It’s hard to be personally accountable if you're not clear what you’re responsible for.

If this is the case for you, ask your boss to provide a job description that sets out your tasks clearly. If responsibilities are unclear within the team, ask your manager to outline who is responsible for different team tasks, and to share this information with everyone involved.

• Be Honest

Success in life only comes when you’re completely honest with yourself, and with others. This means setting aside your pride, and admitting when you’ve made a mistake.

So, tune into your "gut feelings" when things are difficult, and learn to ask for help if you’re struggling, so that you don’t let others down.

Tip: Honesty is always the best policy, but don’t use it to blame others, or to make excuses. Instead, focus on your own role in a situation, and think about how you can resolve the problem.

• Say Sorry

Accountability doesn’t stop with honesty. If something has gone wrong and you were responsible, then you need to apologize . Focus on making amends when you apologize – show what you’ll do to make the situation right. This allows everyone involved to move on, and helps them focus on the end goal, rather than the problem.

Note: Be aware of the legal implications of saying sorry: in some countries and states, this can be taken as an admission of liability. Take advice from your boss or a legal professional if you need to apologize on behalf of your organization.

• Use Time Wisely

Procrastination is a common way to avoid responsibility, as it delays dealing with a problem, meaning that someone else may solve it instead. Your colleagues may feel that they can’t rely on you, and this will affect your professional reputation.

You can overcome procrastination by identifying why you do it. Is the task dull? Do you lack information or resources? Or is there some other cause? Once you understand why you put things off, you can take steps to fix the problem.

Next, practice good time management, so that you make time for what’s important. Use tools such as Eisenhower's Urgent/Important Principle or Action Programs to manage your time more efficiently.

• Don't Overcommit

When you take on too much, something will eventually fall through the cracks. That means that you've let someone down.

So, before you agree to a new task, think carefully about your schedule and whether you'll be able to fulfill the task to the best of your ability.

If you're not sure that you can complete it, say "yes" to the person and "no" to the task so that you maintain a strong relationship and a good reputation.

• Make Changes

Accountability can open up powerful learning opportunities. When something hasn’t gone to plan, ask for feedback , and look for ways to do things differently in the future.

Reflect on your actions, too: spend some time at the end of each day running through these simple questions:

What could I have done differently today? How can I build this change into my job from now on? In time, you’ll build new skills and better ways to deal with difficult situations.

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What did you think about this article? Do you feel it taught you something? Next week we will be learning about the Eisenhower's Urgent/Important Principle and the following week about Action Programs. Let us know about topics you would like to learn about.