Remember that song?
"Who let the dogs out?"
It assaulted my ears for years (sorry, Baha Men).
And like a call and response at a Sunday service, I always chimed in with, "WHO, WHO, WHO, WHO!"
You didn't?!
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| My wonderdogs, Deja Vu and Indie, hoping I let them out. |
Though I’m not beyond using a pic of my dogs to get your attention, today’s message is all about accountability, not dogs.
Who really did let those darn dogs out? Was anyone ever held accountable? Did the dogs come back? Are they okay?
Accountability-- the ability to accept responsibility for one's actions-- is a HUGE trust builder in the workplace.
And just like that I awkwardly turned an early aughts ear worm and a picture of my dogs into a blog post. 😆
Leaders build psychological safety by nurturing an environment in which their team is not only expected to make mistakes and but also to admit them and learn from them.
Team members build credibility and trust with their colleagues when they are able to speak up when things are off course.
My favorite company to work with (you know who you are!) embraces accountability in its three corporate values: passion, humility and trustworthiness. These are more than power words on their website. They really aim to weave the values in everything they do, internally and externally.
With passion, employees are encouraged to accomplish great things. They are told to take ownership in all of their work.
This gives them space to take credit for their wins and accept their losses.
With regard to humility, they are to respect and learn not only from their colleagues, but also from their competitors.
This gives them room to grow from all experiences- good and bad.
As for trustworthiness, they proclaim that their dependence on one another becomes their greatest strength.
This gives them the drive to excel and be honest, when they hit the target, and when they don't.
If someone at this company "lets the dogs out," they can speak up, get help getting the dogs back inside, and learn from the error to ensure it doesn’t happen again.