A powerful ingredient to boosting productivity and getting the job done is available to everyone! Wouldn't you love to increase your chances of accomplishing more, foster personal growth, and accelerate your career?
Absolutely! And what if it didn't require any extra self-discipline than you already have—sounds too good to be true, right? (Cue the infomercial!)
A Highly Practical Ingredient
A natural secret to boosting productivity has been uncovered, with valuable research conducted by the Association for Talent Development (formerly the American Society for Training and Development).
Here’s a summary of their findings.
So, what’s this SECRET INGREDIENT to getting the job done?
Find and work with an ACCOUNTABILITY PARTNER!
Here’s how to make the most out of your Accountability Partner (AP). These guidelines aren't just a list of rules—they’re a clear path to success. They highlight the essential role of the AP in the process, ensuring that both of you get the most out of the task at hand. Before you choose your AP, take a moment to review these guidelines. Selecting the right AP can truly make all the difference.
Commit to supporting your Partner and their desire to improve. The goals they’re working toward matter to them. They need and want your help. Research shows that high performers are driven to improve, so your honest feedback is an incredible ingredient to them.
Give the ingredient of objective feedback
Avoid letting your personal feelings influence what you share (or hold back). This is a common challenge in relationships, and it can diminish the effectiveness of being an AP. Instead, focus on facts, not opinions or feelings about situations. Observe their behavior and actions, especially in interactions with peers, subordinates, and supervisors.
Sometimes, people will only open up to you about others if they know it’s acceptable. So, ask your partner for a letter of permission to give to those you’re interviewing. It could be something simple like: “I am _____’s AP. They’re working on improving ____. Here’s their permission to talk with you to see if you have any suggestions for their improvement. What two pieces of advice would you offer? What aspects of their behavior would you like to see more or less of?"
Make it reciprocal
As the AP, don’t forget to use this relationship to help yourself as well. Think of areas you’d like to improve, then share them with your partner and ask if they’d be willing to hold you accountable in return.
One of the greatest benefits of this approach is creating an environment focused on growth rather than judgment. As the AP, some people may see you as the "judge" or the "policeman" in their lives. But you can also leverage your partner as the "secret ingredient" to boost your own progress on the task at hand!
Keep it short and simple to plan job tasks
The AP process doesn’t require a lot of time. It’s easy to over-schedule, which can make you dread meetings. Keeping sessions shorter makes it easier to plan and accomplish job tasks. The focus of these meetings isn’t to solve problems, but to check in and see if they are following through on what they said they wanted to do.
Be enthusiastic and supportive
You are only their judge if both of you agree that this is part of the process. Otherwise, you are not the “law” enforcing anything—you are a resource to help them.
Keep in mind, their decision to change is completely up to them. They are free to ignore the improvements they said they wanted to make. If you criticize or condemn them, it will only create a barrier to the relationship continuing. Often, when someone comes to the AP even without having worked on anything, that’s still a positive step. As the AP, it’s perfectly okay to ask if they are serious about making changes. And if several meetings show little or no progress, you can ask if it’s time to reconsider the partnership.
Lastly, always ask for permission before offering advice. Keep the meetings light, easy, and even fun. This won’t happen if you view your role as the judge of their life.
A simple ingredient for you
Once you’ve selected your AP (the secret ingredient to getting the job done) and shared the above information with them, use the following steps to kickstart your journey of improvement. Feel free to add anything that will help, but keep administrative tasks to a minimum. Your goal is to focus on actually getting the job done.
1. List of Items
Decide on the specific items you will focus on. Keep the list small—aim for 3 items, but no more than 5. If you exceed 5, staying focused becomes more challenging. If you've recently completed a 360 survey, select two items from it.
Metrics
Establish a metric for each item. Without metrics, it's hard to track progress objectively. Creating a solid measurement may take time, but it’s worth the effort as it greatly enhances the energy you invest in improvement. Clear metrics provide a focused direction for progress. For example, if you're working on praising and recognizing others, a metric could be the number of people you praise or recognize each day. You could also track whether you do it publicly or privately.
Metric Question
Formulate a question around the metric you’ve established. This is something your AP will ask you regularly. For example, “Did you praise and encourage at least one direct report publicly today?”
Schedule Times to Talk
Set up a regular meeting time with your AP, ideally once a week or at least every two weeks, lasting 3 to 5 minutes. The purpose of the meeting is to check progress or status, not to solve problems for lack of progress. The key to this process is knowing that someone will ask you about what you said you wanted to achieve.
Your AP will ask the questions you’ve agreed upon, and you can reciprocate by asking their questions, if the relationship is mutual. Be mindful of your meeting time limit—don’t let the sessions become burdensome for either of you. A phone call works great, but face-to-face communication, while it might take longer, is often more effective. If there’s no progress, you can arrange other meetings for deeper discussion.
Enjoy these successful and proven ingredients of getting the job done and accomplishing more. Try them out and let me know how they worked for you!