While we’re on hiatus preparing for a new season of Rethink the Way You Sell, we wanted to bring you some content from Jeff you probably haven’t heard before. Jeff produced a premium podcast called Deeper Thought from 2020-2022 and you’re about to hear one of those episodes. Enjoy!

This is an enhanced audio version of the Deeper Thought post "Accepting Responsibility - Holding Yourself Accountable" written by Mike Simmons including an interview with the author and Camille Clemons.

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Accepting Responsibility - Holding Yourself Accountable

I'm sorry - I missed the mark, I did not deliver on time. This post was supposed to go live yesterday. I'm drafting it now, and using it as an opportunity to drive deeper thought on what we choose to do, and how we advance things.

Many of us have things we would like to accomplish. Many of us have a list of things we thought we would have accomplished at this point in our lives, that we have not. Some of us may be surprised by the unexpected things we have accomplished, that we never planned on.

“A goal without a plan is just a wish.”

― Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

Do you have goals?

Are they Daily, Weekly, Monthly, Annual, 5-year goals?

How are you progressing against these goals?

Why are you failing?

Why are you succeeding?

How do you measure progress?

What's your process for prioritizing things?

When do you say no?

“Uncle Mike, why do you ask so many questions?”

― Jason (nephew)

I like to think it is part of my charm - unfortunately it irritates the crap out of a lot of folks. The reality - I'm interested in understanding how people think, and then how they act. Ideally the thoughts and actions are aligned. Sometimes they are not.

The questions above can help you get to a better space when thinking about your personal responsibility for action.

They can also help as checkpoints to to hold yourself personally accountable.

When it comes to goal setting and execution, many of you have heard me say - it starts with clarity and focus - followed by continuous action.

If you are missing on the execution side - first, take some advice from Admiral Payne...

“Do Your Best, and Forgive Yourself”

― Admiral Payne (Pricilla Cockerell's dad, Lee's father-in-law, Dan's grandfather)

So - how do you know if you are doing your best?

You know, you feel it, people see it, your customers show it, your family provides feedback.

If you don't know - ask someone you trust. Ask someone who deeply cares about you. Ask someone who doesn't have to live with you :)

Hope this helps you think a bit deeper today around goals, failure, personal accountability, and execution.

Oh, and if you miss on something - because other stuff becomes a priority - start with an "I'm sorry"

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