There is nothing on the planet I do better than sleep, it is my super power.
When I was a kid, I had a bit of a problem with it – the kind of problem where you get to wash your sheets every morning. Not fun. When my parents took me to the doctor about it, he told me on a scale of 1 to 10, I sleep on level 10. There is even a family legend about a wheel coming off the family van and us winding up in a ditch – even through all of that, I didn’t wake up.
My other super power was laziness. Put them together and I had the perfect super power cocktail to underachieve and constantly frustrate my dad – I was a mess.
After perfecting my laziness in college, I enlisted in the Marine Corps. I knew that if I were to become the man I wanted to be, I had to grow in discipline – and do it fast. I figured that the Marine Corps was the best teacher of discipline on the planet…rightly so it turns out.
Earlier this week I was listening to a podcast where the speaker shared that ‘discipline is learned under the 4 layers of accountability’. As I listened to her describe these 4 layers, I was taken back to my Marine Corps days. All of us can benefit from growing in discipline, and these 4 layers of accountability can help you do it.
The 4 Layers of Accountability:
1. Coach – The best in every field have coaches. The role of a coach is to set a standard of excellence and hold you to it. The coach does not accept the status quo. The coach does not buy your excuses and BS. The coach pushes you and stretches you. And that is where growth happens.
In the Marine Corps, this was the Drill Instructor; he demanded excellence in every area. It was the first time I’d been exposed to a culture of excellence, and I loved it.
I’m baffled that more people don’t get coaching. I’m not sure if it is a pride thing, or an ego thing – but there are people out there that have things figured out. Why wouldn’t you want them to help you get to where you want to go faster? Because you want to take full credit? Or is it because you aren’t convinced you are worth betting (investing) on yourself. Or is it something else?
Bottom line: you are doing it the slow and hard way if you go at it without a coach.
2. Team – Team accountability is a group of people at your level or a bit ahead, and all aspiring to the same (or similar) goals. It could be with those you work with, or others in similar situations.
The power of teams comes from the inherent competition that exists. When you see the success others are having, your excuses just don’t hold much power. If they can do it – you can do it.
In the Marines, our team was our platoon, and we were all striving to achieve the same goals. When someone struggled, the rest of us picked up the slack.
You need a team that can push you, encourage you, inspire you, and compete with you.
3. Peer – This is a one-on-one relationship with another person who is at about your level, this is where the most honesty and transparency happens. This is where the two of you talk on a weekly basis, and ask each other the hard questions.
In the Marine Corps, we had the buddy system. You never went anywhere alone – even when we went out in town, we were to be with at least one other person. There is no telling how much trouble this prevented.
A word of caution – your best friend is not the best choice for this role – you want someone who is concerned more for your success and growth, than they are with their relationship with you.
4. Community – This is public accountability, but the context is that of declarations. You want to have a community where you can publicly declare your goals and aspirations. In the context of community, you are highly motivated to accomplish what you’ve shared.
This works best where you state a concrete goal as well as your “punishment” if you don’t accomplish the goal. It might sound like this…
“I’m going to make 100 prospecting calls this week – 20 a day. If I don’t accomplish this, I’m going to wash my managing broker’s car this weekend.”
The Marine Corps really didn’t have this type of community, and you may be wondering if there is one for you. Let me invite you to the CRE Mastery Facebook Group. This is a closed group (you’re invited!) of 500+ CRE professionals. We share best practices, discuss challenges, ask questions, and yes – hold each other accountable.
The Massimo Group holds live events called Massimo Immersions every year in different locations. This immersion is all about helping you create your own prospecting campaign to find and win the business you want. Our coaches will be there helping you create and implement these campaigns based on our proprietary Massimo Methods and our tools. You will literally leave with a completed playbook that you created (with our help) to fill your pipeline full of high-quality opportunities.
Better yet? All 4 of the layers of accountability will be in play…for you. Consider attending our next event or put your name on our list to receive information on the next one.
