Who Wants to be Accountable?

Gosh, those are dreaded words for most people, or are they? Accountability, what’s it really mean? According to Webster’s Online dictionary, accountability means an obligation or willingness to accept responsibility or to account for one's actions.” Read what Wikipedia says about accountability:
Accountability is defined as "A is accountable to B when A is obliged to inform B about A’s (past or future) actions and decisions, to justify them, and to suffer punishment in the case of eventual misconduct".[1]
[1] Schedler, Andreas (1999). "Conceptualizing Accountability". in Andreas Schedler, Larry Diamond, Marc F. Plattner. The Self-Restraining State: Power and Accountability in New Democracies. London: Lynne Rienner Publishers. pp. 13–28. ISBN 1-55587-773-7.
The funny (or sad) thing is, in a business where we should strive for accountability on a daily, weekly and quarterly basis, very few if any of us do incorporate accountability into our workplace. Why? Why do we make accountability so difficult or “dreaded” as I referred to in the first paragraph? I believe the main reason we don’t institute good accountability programs in the workplace is that most people hate failure, and when we fail to meet up to our goals and expectations we feel a sense of a letdown to ourselves, our family and the organization. If we could somehow shift the failure aspect into a positive, it would work! How can we do this? Easy, instead of asking “why” ask “what.”

Don’t say – “Why didn’t you prospect this week? You said you we’re going to call on [x] number of new prospects, why?

Try – “What could you do differently this week to help you meet your goal of [x] new prospects?

I believe as managers and brokers we have to shift from the failure aspect to more of a coaching method. Use the defeats as ways to learn and grow. Make it clear from the outset that all of us will fall short or our goals and desires, but that doesn’t mean we can get back up and keep going. I love the old saying, “it’s not how many times you get knocked down, but how long you stay on the floor.”

Finally, for brokers and managers, accountability to your team is required and essential for your team to grow and prosper. Make accountability a coaching session and make sure you set time aside on a regular basis to help your team with accountability. For larger organizations (and even smaller groups) allow individuals to partner up with the accountability process. Make sure that these small groups meet regularly and encourage helping them and meeting on occasion to facilitate and assist with the accountability process.

There are some excellent books on accountability if you need to research more, and if you would like a copy of my accountability scorecard I’ve created to help with implementing this at your office please send me an e-mail and I’ll be glad to forward it to you at no cost. John@RealEstateTechGuy.com.

For more help with accountability visit www.RealEstateSalesMeetings.com.

The Secret Component of Highest Productivity

A few months ago, I was a speaker again at the NAR 2007 convention. (I think that was my 16th year!) I talked about the four components of ‘new’ leadership. Why is switching leadership style so important? The world has changed, and, if you’re an agent or a manager, you need to lead effectively in all situations (lead your clients, lead your fellow agents, lead your team). And, there’s one style component that has a huge impact on both culture and productivity, yet few of us realize it:

1. Standards-driven organization: In almost every presentation I do for leadership, I ask attendees if they have productivity standards (minimum expectations) in their companies. Out of 200 attendees, about three will raise their hands. No wonder agents don’t believe they must be ‘on the team’, pulling their own weight in production. No wonder managers are wondering how to get their agents to go to work. No wonder there are challenges recruiting and retaining! No wonder agents are having great challenges attempting to get their buyers’ agents to pull their load. And, no wonder agents are wasting time with buyers who won’t buy and sellers who overprice!

How to Assure no One will Work very Hard

Having no standards de-motivates. In a recent study by The Ripple Effective of Negativity Leadership IQ, 87% of the 70,305 executives, managers, and employees interviewed said working with a slacker actually made them want to change jobs; 93% said it hampered their development or decreased their productivity. So, without standards, real estate leaders are de-motivating their good performers!

Here’s what Roy Disney says about effective leadership, from the New Leadership Paradigm:

Leadership is the ability to establish standards and manage a creative climate where people are self-motivated toward the mastery of long-term constructive goals in a participatory environment of mutual respect compatible with personal values.

There are many theme parks, but they aren’t Disney. What is the difference? One huge difference, and you know this if you’ve visited various theme parks, is that Disney has high standards.

Agents: What would it mean to your time management and bottom line if you had high standards for your clients? (Studies show that top producers qualify carefully and ‘tell the truth attractively’ to both buyers and sellers, so they don’t waste anyone’s time).

Agents: See my new for 2008 program, On Track to Success in 30 Days System for Experienced Agents. It has a 30 day program with standards that assure your success.

Managers: See the coaching system for On Track to Success, Managers' On Track to Success Coaching for Experienced Agents. I’ve given you dozens of tips on how to create standards and hold agents accountable to standards and goals.

Real Life has Standards

A few months ago, I hired a personal fitness trainer. Do you think she has standards? You betcha. Are they higher than I would like to exert myself? You betcha. Is this making me more fit? Right again. It’s true any time we get coached. Our coach always urges us to do more than we would be willing to do on our own. So, we get better faster.

High Standards has a Positive Message

Working with people with high standards sends a message to each one of us:

You’re worth it. You can do it. I believe in you.

Obviously, you would not be working with that leader if that leader didn’t think you ‘had it’, would you? That belief drives us to do much better than we thought we could do. It’s inspiring. And, in this challenging real estate market, we need all the inspiration we can get! So, we’re all in leadership, whether it’s with our clients, with other agents on our team, as a manager, or as a parent. Setting standards and encouraging meeting them is the greatest gift you can give to someone—or can give yourself.

Carla Cross, CRB, MA, is president of Carla Cross Seminars, Inc. and Carla Cross Coaching, specializing in real estate sales and management. Cross, an international speaker and coach, is the author of 6 internationally published books, 20 productivity programs, and is a winner of the National Association of Realtors’ National Educator of the Year award. Contact her at www.carlacross.com or 425-392-6914.