Is Your Accountability in the Toilet?

My 8-year old twins go through toilet paper as if I ran Costco.

Jacob and Sophie's thoughtless unscrolling of the rolls has clogged up toilets from Eastern Long Island to South Florida, and recently, they've struck internationally with an impressive blockage in Vancouver, B.C.

One notable exception to their bi-coastal reign of toilet tissue terror: When the roll is down to its last three squares, Jacob and Sophie become staunch conservationists.

Jacob pretends to be environmentally-conscious: "I don't want to kill trees!"

Sophie tries her hand at being cost-conscious: "I don't want to waste your money!"

And both devolve into being grossly unconscious: "Uh, I just forgot to, uh, use toilet paper this time."

Blech.

Why the sudden urge to conserve? Because neither of them wants to be accountable for changing the roll.

In your organization, with your team and in your personal life, being accountable is what makes the difference between getting problems solved and flushing progress down the toilet.

Being accountable means that you:

See a challenge rather than ignore it
Admit a mistake rather than deny it
Own a project or process rather than shirk it
Follow-up on your work rather than drop it

Looking to make a positive, proactive change that doesn't cost you a penny? Start by downloading my Accountability Self-Assessment to use with your company, your team, and yourself - and make a public commitment to one new behavior or conversation.

And while I won't make my kids account for every square, I do want them to get square about their accountability.

Deborah Grayson Riegel, MSW, ACC
www.MyJewishCoach.com