I Got Your Six

ac•count•abil•i•ty
The quality or state of being accountable; an obligation or willingness to accept responsibility or to account for one's actions. Others can count on you; rely on you; trust you.
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We live in a busy world with words tossed around like; collaboration, teamwork, and trust. These are deep human words that can strengthen an organization or deplete it.

A few weeks ago, my car was parked in a lot and I was on a client call. Suddenly the driver of a 10-ton truck parked 50 feet away decided to back up, and back up, and despite my sustained horn, backed up over the front of my car.

We are sorry

Fast forward to yesterday when my insurance company adjuster looked me in the eye and apologized for the inconvenience and mistake they made to the repairs. Yes, you read that correctly. They owned it. They were accountable through their actions.

When you’re in a restaurant and they mess up your meal, you probably don’t want to make a big fuss, you just want someone to fix it. I can’t speak for you, but the last thing I want when I'm trying to enjoy some dinner with others is have an argument with a staff member over an overdone steak.

Are you accountable to everyone on your team?
Is everyone on your team accountable to you?

Years ago, I worked with a guy who had the miraculous ability to never get any on him. He was masterful at strategically being out of the way when bullets flew by and rose to a prominent national position within the organization. He had many talents and brought value but as one of his regional direct reports, I just needed to know he had my back. That was never confirmed.

Leadership is not something we get with our new shiny office. It is not bestowed upon us because it says so on our email signature. We earn it through being accountable.

If we want to gain a unique selling proposition for our company to become a superior choice for our customers, it begins by providing better service to our internal customers – to each other. We all mess up. It's how we deal with it that counts most.

It starts with knowing I got your six and you got my nine.
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Kneale Mann | Leadership Strategist, consultant, writer, speaker, executive coach facilitating performance growth with leaders, management, and teams.

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