COUNT ON ME
“If you could sit down with yourself five years ago, and impart one piece of business advice that you’ve learned, what would it be?”
A member of a mastermind group posed this excellent question.
The answers ranged from practical and applicable, to philosophical and thought-provoking. All were gold. As it approached my turn, I began to mull my response. What I hit on was the power of systematic accountability.
When we instituted this at Duckett Ladd, it changed things – almost overnight. We went years without it, and our people and our results suffered as a result. We see a lot of practice owners struggling with the same thing.
I was recently talking with a thought leader in the dental space, who confirmed our suspicion that this is a big problem with practice owners. It’s something that is just not done. Yet, we all know it should be done, so why isn’t it? Because it’s hard work. Creating systematic accountability takes heavy lifting. You will have to be a driver of change, and many team members won’t like that. But, the right ones will.
It’s human nature to avoid conflict and resist change. We hide from these conversations because they’re uncomfortable. We don’t even hold ourselves accountable, because we might not like what we see. But when you create a cadence of accountability, you’ll be amazed at what you can accomplish. When you are able to look objectively at the results your people are achieving and see if it’s driving your goals forward, you will build momentum. When you create a model where nobody can hide subpar results, the right people will thrive, the wrong ones will opt-out.
When you create a model that allows each person to thrive as the best version of themselves (including you) you’ll light the fuse on your rocket ship.
So how is this done?
Entrepreneurial Operating System
We implemented EOS Traction and hired an Integrator to run the ship. That changed everything for us. The EOS model is not for everybody.
So, here are a few key takeaways for setting up a great system…
It must start at the top
If you’re not willing to hold yourself to the highest standard of anyone, stop here, you’re wasting your time.
It must be clearly communicated
We rolled out Traction at an all-hands meeting. We took our time to walk through and answered any questions.
It must have a consistent cadence
For us, it’s our weekly team meetings.
It must be objective and clear
Everyone knows what is expected of them and how their performance will be evaluated. Nothing personal, this is just what we need from this seat.
It must be ingrained in your DNA
If your entire team isn’t living and breathing it, it will ultimately fail from within.
Instituting systematic accountability changes everything. It did for us, and countless others we’ve met along our journey. So, are you ready to start? It’s going to take a lot of hard work, and you’ll want to quit. Don’t. Stay the course and you’ll be amazed where your rocket ship takes you.
Questions or comments? We would love to hear from you! E-mail me at wladd@duckettladd.com
