Not-So-Special Delivery

New York City always seems to present me with special lessons, and my most recent visit was no different. My flight from Boston landed at JFK airport without incident, and I made my way outside to the taxi queue. I stepped to the front of the line and a ramshackle Yellow Cab pulled up. The most maniacal taxi driver I've ever seen stepped out onto the sidewalk. (This guy made Robert DeNiro look like Robert Goulet.) I haven't had a decent brush with death in weeks, so I played along.

The morning traffic slowed our progress into Manhattan, and on one of the endless cross streets, everything came to a complete stop. Desperate not to make eye contact with my frightening cabbie, I looked out the thoroughly smudged window and saw a delivery van double parked next to me. (I'm convinced there's no single parking in Manhattan, by the way, only the double and triple variety.) The back door of the van was lifted, and I watched a delivery guy inside as he moved various packages around.

He would pick up each package, hold it out at about shoulder height, and drop it to the floor of the van with a solid *whump*. If he happened to grab a small one, he'd spin it toward the floor like a top. As I watched him exacting some twisted revenge on the packages that had undoubtedly wronged him, I wondered - what exactly was in those packages?

Grandma's gravy boat? *whump*
Homemade cookies? *whump*
Little Suzy's X-Rays? *whump*

While I waited for the snarled traffic to let up, I kept watching this ridiculous scene. After a few minutes, we finally inched forward. At some level, I figured that a city of 8 million people ironically offered some degree of anonymity. In the middle of all the madness and bustle, I'm sure he didn't think anyone was watching him. (Certainly not a handsome personal development columnist and one scary-ass cabbie.) I began to wonder, would he have treated those packages with such disregard if their owners were watching him? What if Leslie Stahl from 60 Minutes were watching him? What if his own mother were watching him? (That's right, I went there.)

With any type of an audience, he probably would've thought twice before booting that last package through the uprights. The fact is, it shouldn't have mattered.

While we laud athletes, celebrities, exhibitionists, and other people who perform in front of a crowd, for most of us success is determined more by how we act when nobody else is around. The egghead term for this phenomenon is "personal accountability". It relates to how we act and how we think when there's nobody but us around. Some of us are better than others at exercising high levels of personal accountability in the face of competing alternatives and shortcuts.

• If your boss left early, would you do the same?
• If you found yourself home alone with a slice of cheesecake, would it stand a chance?
• If you were trying to save your pennies, would you still order that sweater that's to die for?
• If you didn't have a clear set of life goals in hand, would you keep watching late-night television?

Only you can do the work necessary to accomplish the goals in your life. Of course you should share your goals with others and ask for help along the way, but in the end it's going to be up to you. It's important to develop the self-discipline and personal accountability that you need to succeed. You can use the power of your vision and your goals to remind yourself how important it is to stay on track.

If you find that you're having trouble following through and holding yourself accountable, it's a great idea to tell others what you're working on and ask them to ask you how you're progressing. Borrow this extra set of eyes to get you through the tough times, but also work diligently to be your own taskmaster. Try to demonstrate maximum effort at all times. Work hard to strive for excellence in everything you do. Don't be like our delivery guy when you're handling something as precious as your dream.

Learn to develop personal accountability, and your goal achievements will follow in kind.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm off to pick up some extra bubble wrap.

Related Links

New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission
Shipping company our delivery guy works for
60 Minutes' Leslie Stahl

Quote of the Week

"You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today."
Abraham Lincoln

Coaching Quickie: Not So Special Delivery

Check back next week for results!

Last Week's Results

Coaching Quickie: Makin' a List
Do holiday schedules interfere with your goals?

(13%) No Way: I know they're coming, I look for ways to work holiday events into my plans, and I get my shopping done in November.
(63%) A Little Bit: It's hard to stay on track with so much going on, but it's a really fun time of year.
(00%) Quite a lot: I keep plugging away at things, but with shopping, family and friends there's just not enough time.
(25%) Totally: I end up stressed out and overloaded. Lets get them over with already.

If you missed it, you can read last week's newsletter online here.