My PA made me do it...🏖

 

I didn’t want to write this, but Hayley made me do it! 😂

I’m going on holiday next week (Sunday to be precise ) and I’m already in holiday mode. I can picture the glistening beer dripping with condensation by the pool. Sorry where was I…

Ah yes. Going away and having a digital detox is just what the doctor ordered. So to be totally honest I didn't feel like writing this (at all). Which is exactly why I always need that accountability. 

See as a social selling coach that’s the biggest hurdle that people fall over at. With all the will in the world, you can coach someone all day long and then embed the practice as habit. But even with that people still manage to fall off the wagon (just like I almost did with this newsletter).

This is part of the reason I build accountability into our training and coaching. Pulling people up on why they aren't posting, aren't responding, aren't digitally networking and aren't having conversations with prospects keeps them (and me) accountable.

More importantly it allows them to close more deals and make you and the business more money!

There is a reason what we do is labour intensive (building habits and new neural pathway formation is a long process) but without the accountability people slowly revert to old practices and old, more inefficient ways of working.

According to a study by the American Society of Training and Development, 

People who committed to achieving a goal were 95% more likely to accomplish that goal if they also set up accountability meetings with someone.

This works best with someone that is external to the company. They can bring best practices and have no internal baggage or politics and can be extremely objective.

Some best practices to enable accountability internally and post programme with us can be -

1. Have an accurate end vision.  

This is the single best way to start getting things done. To do this, you need to know what your business’ goals and objectives are. Once you have these in mind, you’ll want to share them with anyone else involved.

2. Challenge your team to take ownership over their own tasks. 

Many employees don’t really understand what their organization is trying to accomplish. As a business owner, this should scare you. After your employees have clear objectives and goals, the next step (which is also a big challenge for some business owners) is to give them room to take ownership over these tasks. This is where a clear strategy comes into play.

3. Set deadlines and follow through.

Setting a deadline for yourself is the best way to stay accountable. This may be a public deadline or a deadline that’s personal to you. But even if a deadline isn’t specifically required, set one anyway and whack it in the diary.

4. Involve outside mentors to hold you accountable.

As mentioned previously - A mentor, a business coach or even a trusted colleague can help you with this. When you have someone present in your life to keep an eye on your progress, accountability becomes that much easier. You can even have them set up weekly check-ins to make it a habit.

5. Be consistent.

It’s easy to say you’ll be consistent, but it’s not always easy to put into practice — especially if you’re already stretched thin with a tight schedule and workload. Consistency in your daily life and behavior will build better habits and help to keep you accountable. And this, in turn, will equate to more long-term success. This is key on social.

6. Create systems for accountability. 

Systems are processes that make productive things happen. And the best way to create them in your own life is by creating habits. To do this, set up some reminders or milestones for yourself in order to keep your goals and commitments fresh and at the forefront of your mind. My coaching is clearly structured with all the appropriate systems you'll need to attain success.

7. Reward yourself.

You probably work hard for the business. That’s good. But don’t forget to take care of yourself as well. This will keep you rested, motivated and encouraged to continue onward. In order to make sure this happens, make reward goals for yourself. Commit to having an evening out after that expense report. Build these things into your goals and make them a priority.  My habits consist of daily walks, journaling and mediation to stay on track and give myself the time and space I need to remain focused.

8. Stay in the moment.

It’s essential to stay present. This is something that many people struggle with. You won’t find success in the now if you get caught up in worrying about the future or rehashing the failures in the past. Even while planning for the future, don’t forget to stay grounded in the moment, and you’ll discover it’s easier to find success. Meditation can hep with this and I thoroughly recommend giving the calm app a go.

9. Accept that accountability isn’t easy.

We all want to see results quickly. But staying committed to the long-term process is what’s going to get you there. You might not see the rewards of your effort right away, but they’ll come. Stay committed. Like Luke in Star Wars, stay on target!

10. Budget your time. 

In the words of Stephen R. Covey, "The key is in not spending time, but in investing it." It’s vital to understand when to work on things and how much time you have to finish them. Following the other steps like creating systems for accountability and setting deadlines are the best way to successfully budget your time.

11. Take regular internal social selling meetings 

(Ideally weekly) between all of the team members who are present and are building their personal brands on social. These should be lead by an internal creator manager or social media lead (if the job does not exist create it, CMO’s who are open to learning can be a good fit for the role). To make sure there is overlap with content and key individuals and target accounts are being engaged with.

12. Lead from the front 

C suite and leadership should demonstrate and also be producing content to lead the charge internally. Just being involved in strategy and not being in the trenches with the rest of the team shows a misalignment. It’s also a great way of demonstrating thought leadership through your content and sharing your value set with the wider team on a daily basis (something that is time constrained when taking internal meetings). I have coached people that say they now know more about the people they work with than ever before and that creates a much stronger internal bond with the team. Resulting in more trust and a stronger and more aligned purpose.

So accountability is super important and with social even more so. Having an external accountability partner (post coaching) keeps you on the straight and narrow until it becomes living and breathing practice across the whole of the social selling team inside the company.

#socialselling #accountability #bestpractices #training #coaching