As I study successful teams, I see one common characteristic very clearly. Every one of these teams has a person or people who hold themselves personally accountable. These are the special people who only need a coach to teach them what and how to do something; then they take that and run with it. They understand that a major part of their job is to be self sufficient and personally accountable for their improvement and productivity. As I look around the NBA at these special players, I see some other distinct traits, all related to this personal accountability. These players:
• don't blame others first; instead, they look first for what they contributed (or did not contribute) to the situation
• don't complain; instead, they look for ways to correct things that aren't working
• don't procrastinate; instead, get things done now
• always give more than they ask of others
• always look to take on as much as they can handle, rather than look to pass things on to others all the time
• are constantly trying to improve their game so they can bring more to the team and consistently fulfill their role
• are self starters and study the game (and themselves) enough to know what needs to be done; then go about doing it
• do the unrequired work, knowing that it simply needs to get done -- extra shots, extra weight training, extra film watching, etc. – without constantly needing a coach to tell them to work
• hold others accountable for their jobs and roles because they know the importance of accountability as it relates to winning; this creates a collective responsibility
• always be among of the most trusted players on the team, by coaches and players
