177. Redefining Accountability

What if holding someone accountable is one of the most caring things you can do as a leader?

Listen for practical tips to shift accountability from control to care.

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Transcript

Teri Schmidt: 0:00

What if I told you that holding someone accountable could be one of the most caring things that you can do as a leader? I know for you and me compassionate driven leaders, the word accountability can feel uncomfortable. You might worry about coming off as harsh or micromanaging, but accountability, when done well isn't about control. It's about care. It's about saying, I see you, I see your potential, and I care enough to help you reach it. I'm Terry Schmidt, executive and leadership coach at Strong Leaders Serve, where we work with compassionate driven leaders and their teams to transform potential into performance. Leading with both compassion and results is a constant dance, one that requires practicing leadership as an art. Not just a science, it's not always comfortable. But here on the Strong Leaders Serve Podcast, we're here to help you navigate that dance with clarity, confidence, and care. Today we're diving into the practice of accountability as care and how it's actually one of your most powerful tools to address the two biggest challenges we're tackling this season stifling workload and disconnection. So let's get started. Well, in the theme of continuing to talk about leadership skills, that may be a little bit uncomfortable, especially for compassionate leaders. Remember last week we talked about the skill of advocacy with MIT, professor Deborah an Kona. Today we're gonna talk about accountability, but before we jump in, I wanted to remind you of the care leadership model that we used as strong leaders serve that I introduced a few episodes ago because it definitely is relevant in terms of how we work with leaders. To really hone their skills of holding someone accountable. So if you remember, the C stands for Connect with Humanity or Compassion, and that's all about building authentic relationships through trust and empathy. The A means align expectations, and this is really where accountability comes in, where it's about setting clear, mutually agreed upon goals. The R stands for reinforcing Progress, that focus on results, celebrating small wins while driving outcomes. And finally, the E is empowering with trust, and that's where delegating meaningfully giving autonomy with support comes in, which is very much related to accountability as care. Together, these four elements create a culture where your team knows what's expected, feels valued, and has the trust and tools to succeed. And as I mentioned today, we're focusing on that second piece, which also has relationship, particularly to the fourth piece, aligning expectations through accountability. Okay, and we're gonna be talking about how shifting the way you think about accountability can actually help you relieve overwhelming workloads and repair disconnection on your team. So let's be honest, first, accountability has kind of gotten a bad reputation. When I think of someone holding me accountable, it isn't exactly that warm, fuzzy feeling. Too often accountability is used as a way to catch people making mistakes or to assign blame when things go wrong. Think back to a time where you were held accountable in a way that felt controlling. Maybe you were asked why you missed a deadline without anyone ever asking what challenges you were facing, or maybe you were surprised by feedback that you didn't even know was coming. That kind of accountability, the top down one way kind creates distance. It makes people hide from mistakes instead of owning them, and that distance fuels disconnection because accountability starts to feel like something that is done to you than something that's done with you. Now if you look around, and I'm sure in your own life, there are examples all over the place where people are shirking from that kind of accountability. They don't feel safe really to admit mistakes. So on the flip side, what does accountability look like when it's rooted in care instead of control? It is actually very simple. It's accountability that starts with believing in someone's potential and committing to help them succeed, which if you've been around strong leaders, serve for any amount of time. You know, this is very much aligned with our definition of Leadership, which is courageously using your talents to make a way for others to courageously use theirs. I was able to experience this once in my past. I had a leader who noticed I was falling behind on a project and instead of jumping straight to, why isn't this done? Why are you so behind? They asked, I know this isn't like you, is something getting in the way. How can I support you? That one question transformed accountability into a partnership I felt seen, not scrutinized, and that gave me the energy and the clarity to get back on track. This is the kind of accountability that fosters connection instead of breaking it down. When you hold someone accountable with care, they feel supported. And that support keeps them engaged even when things are hard. So if you're thinking, okay, I wanna do this, but how, let me give you four practical ways to shift from control based accountability to care-based accountability. And as a bonus, these shifts also help us address the two biggest leadership challenges that we're talking about this season. Stifling workloads and disconnection. So the first way co-create clear expectations together. This isn't the first time that we've talked about clear expectations and feedback. But one of the fastest ways to reduce workload overwhelm is to make sure everyone understands what's expected and what's not. When you and your team co-create clear goals, it reduces confusion and duplication of work. Ask yourself and your team, what does success look like? And what will you need from me to get there? This creates clarity while reinforcing your commitment to your team member's success, which reduces stress and fosters connection. It's also a great way to provide some stability, which we've talked about in the past is one of the four core needs that Gallup finds that followers need from their leaders. Second, lead with curiosity and not judgment. When people fall behind and they will, especially in the times that we're going through when so much work is put on. So few people. In those situations, your first response matters. Curiosity creates safety and connection while judgment, fuel, defensiveness, and distance. When you ask what's getting in the way, you not only uncover barriers that might be increasing workload, not just for that person, but for everyone. But you also show your team that you care about them as people. And not just their output. Third, you wanna create two way accountability. Accountability can't just flow top down. Invite your team to hold you accountable too. Ask questions like, how am I doing in supporting you? This kind of mutual accountability strengthens trust and connection because it shows that you're in this together. It also gives you visibility into places where your own actions or unclear processes, might be adding unnecessary workload to your team. If you have a particular leadership skill that you're working on and you feel comfortable with your team. Showing them that you are actually working on developing yourself can be a great way to create this two-way accountability. You might say, Hey, I know that I tend to interrupt people in meetings, and that's something that I'm really working on. If you find me interrupting someone, can you just give me this little signal? Or maybe you ask a team member after a meeting. How was I in terms of keeping from interrupting people during that meeting? Having conversations like this does wonders for increasing psychological safety as well as a sense of connection on your team, and it also likes, like we've been talking about, creates that two-way accountability. So accountability can be seen in a positive light instead of a negative one. And finally, very much aligned with the R. In our care model, celebrate progress, not just perfection. When workloads are heavy, people need to feel like progress matters, even if the finish line is still far away. When you celebrate small wins, you reinforce that their efforts matter, and you create opportunities to reconnect around shared successes. This reduces feelings of isolation and helps the team feel like they're making meaningful progress together. So, I wanna leave you with a challenge. As you think about your own leadership this week, I encourage you to reflect on these questions. When has someone held you accountable in a way that felt like care rather than control? How might you take. Some of what they did in that situation and apply it when you have to hold someone accountable. Second, can you think of a time when you held someone accountable in a way that strengthened trust and connection? What's something that you can repeat from that? And third, who on your team right now could benefit from care-based accountability? Especially someone who might be struggling under the weight of workload or feeling disconnected. Taking some time to think about these three questions can help you bring more intention and more care into your leadership practice of accountability. So here's what I want you to take away today. Accountability, when grounded in care, doesn't just drive results. It lightens the load and strengthens connection. It shows your team that you see them, you believe in them, and that you're invested in their success, even when things go wrong. So this week when you notice someone struggling, I challenge you to pause, ask. What's getting in the way and how can I support you? That simple shift can turn accountability into an act of care, and it can help you tackle both workload and disconnection in the process. If you found something helpful in this episode or have the opportunity to practice it, I would love to hear from you. Definitely connect with me on LinkedIn and let me know what resonated. I hope you have a wonderful week leading as a compassionate driven leader. I'll be back with you again next week.