It seems to me that “accountability” is an old concept that has become a new buzzword. It got me to break it apart into its pieces and gave me this question: Are you able to account?

Watch any old episode of Law & Order and you’ll hear a line like, “Are you able to account for your whereabouts on the night of the 15th?”

If you are given the responsibility of handling the petty cash at work, you have to be able to account for where it all went.

We all come up short in some area; that’s a given. What makes that shortfall longer than it needs to be is lack of accountability.

When we refuse or are unable to account, our credibility is disabled.

I find that credibility is something you can count on.

Credible people are able to account.

The trail away from credibility is to paint someone else as accountable for your area of responsibility. Again, if you are in charge of the petty cash and neglected to lock the box before leaving work, you may not think you’re accountable when you find the money missing the next morning.

I find it useful to account for our part in any miss hit we’re a part of. It enhances our credibility and, more importantly, going forward, it makes us pay more attention to what we’re responsible for.

Ask any marriage counselor or divorce attorney how often they hear that one or both spouses refuse to be accountable for the demise of the relationship. If you want a credible solution, you have to account for your part of the problem.

If you’re not able to account, you’re most likely not a person that people think they can count on.

Your credibility goes out the window when you assign all the blame out there. It’s an unmistakable sign of immaturity when you’re unable to account.

I’ll leave this where it began – with a reflective question. Are you able to account?

All the best,

John