Want to be more successful in business? Try this

The downside of freedom is lack of accountability

One of the things many owners appreciate about being in business for themselves is not having a boss.

Business ownership gives you the freedom to decide how you want to run every aspect of your business.

There is no ceiling on your growth or your goals – and no one holding you back from making decisions or taking risks. It’s your show!

The downside of this freedom is lack of accountability.

Who holds you accountable for success, for achieving your stated goals?

Without a boss to hold you accountable, it can be easy to let your goals slide.

To put off hard decisions. To not get around to making the changes and improvements you know you need to make.

If you want more success as a business owner, you need to find a way to build accountability into your business.

Here are 3 ways to do that.

1. Be accountable for your time

My clients often tell me that they have too much to do and not enough time – so they need some help with time management.

Here’s the truth.

We can’t manage time. We can only manage the activities we choose to put into our time.

If you feel crunched for time, conduct a time audit. Record how you spend your day in 15-minute increments.

Then spend a minute or two at the end of the day and assign a value to that work: what you would pay someone else to do it?

You may be shocked at how unaccountable you are for the way you spend your day.

As an added bonus, you’ll also discover how to free up some of that time!

2. Be accountable to a mastermind group or internal board

Invite a select group of business owners and meet on a regular basis to discuss your goals and objectives, solve problems, and suggest ways to get better. And yes, hold each other accountable to doing what you said you’d do!

Alternately, you could use your professional network, such as accountant, lawyer, insurance or financial professional to hold you accountable.

Share your numbers and goals and give them permission to prod you each month for results.

3. Be accountable to an assistant

This might seem like an unusual suggestion – but when you think like an executive leader, you’ll see that hiring an assistant is a great way to “outsource accountability.”

Before I was a business coach, I was an executive.

Back in the day, Cindy, my personal assistant walked in to my office every morning with 3 file folders.

And every day she would say: “Here’s your agenda. Here’s your calendar. Here’s what you need for this meeting. Here’s what you need to make decisions on.”

I was the pilot – and she was the air traffic controller. Everything I needed was organized by Cindy. She looked after everything except the items that only I could handle or that required my input.

I didn’t manage Cindy. Cindy managed me!

For the ultimate in accountability, hire a business coach

You’ll notice that all professional athletes have coaches. So do most successful business owners.

It can be lonely at the top and getting feedback from an experienced coach is a great way to get around your blind spots and gain the confidence to move boldly in the direction of your goals.

It’s also one of the best ways to build accountability into your business.

While your coach can’t “do your pushups for you” – you know that you’ll do more and better pushups with the accountability that comes from a coach!

If you’d like to explore how coaching can help you become more accountable for your own success, I invite you to book 15 minutes to chat with me about coaching. You can do that here: book time with John