Thrive recently hosted a Clubhouse event, “The Intersection of Motivation and Accountability.” Why would we tie these two things together, you ask? Well, accountability is accepting responsibility for one’s actions or for getting something done, and motivation is necessary to do that.

When it comes to accountability there has to be willingness. When the willingness is intrinsic there’s more buy-in which equals greater productivity, better quality of work, and increased motivation and energy. When extrinsic accountability is forced, bribed, or coerced, buy-in diminishes (if there is any), productivity decreases, inefficiencies and mistakes creep in, and motivation and energy drain. It becomes the mentality of “I have to do this” versus “I get to do this.”

What is key to remember about accountability is that it is a continuous choice and that you can support people in that choice.

There are a lot of factors that go into accountability that most companies never consider. A deep dive into the dynamics of all of them would span an entire book. Coming soon. In the meantime, there are impactful drivers you can consider when setting a foundation of accountability.

It starts in the hiring process. Are you hiring people who are aligned with your core values and mission? If there’s a mismatch from the start, it’s significantly harder to bridge that gap.

Once the right employee is on board, the primary ingredient in accountability is motivation. To foster motivation you need to hit several of the motivational drivers (or one or two of them in a big way).

These motivational drivers include:

• Clear ownership of the job, project, role, position
  • Clear goals and objectives that inspire and motivate (where employee’s goals align with corporate’s goals)
  • A clear strategy to accomplish those goals, created by the employee with support from management
  • Skills and strategies the employee will use to hold themself accountable (some support may be necessary)
• Ensuring that employees:
  • Have buy-in
  • Have autonomous motivation and accountability versus controlled motivation and accountability (autonomous trumps controlled every time)
  • Can see their way of doing it and are on board with how it’s going to be done
  • Can see a direct correlation between what they are doing and the impact on the organization and/or customer
  • Share values that are aligned with the desired outcome of the project
  • Feel valued, their voices are being heard, and that their contribution matters
  • Have intrinsic and extrinsic drivers in place to support motivation
  • Are passionate about it in a manner that drives productivity
  • Can identify their personal responsibility in the job/project
  • Know that their ideas matter and can be brought to the table
  • Incorporate time to regularly reenergize (exercise), recharge, refuel their body, mind, and spirit. This helps to calm the nervous system so employees are not working from a constant state of depletion/deficit which leads to burnout. Recharging is key to sustainability.
  • Learn skills to turn challenges, problems, or obstacles into positive scenarios or learning experiences. Negativity limits employee awareness of available options and opportunities.

A sustainable foundation of accountability entails momentum. And, since momentum builds from the inertia of repeated motivation, this is where I would encourage you to start. If you master motivation you have overcome the biggest obstacle to accountability. I know that incorporating these drivers may seem like a lofty task. However, I also know that once they are ingrained in your culture, it becomes an automatic process. Have fun!