Welcome to episode 5 of the Fail Forward podcast.   In previous episodes, I’ve talked about accountability and the importance of being accountable when things go wrong.   But what does that mean?   In this episode of the Fail Forward podcast, we will take a deep dive into accountability and why it is such an essential step in failing forwards.    Before my business went under, I worked with a business coach, Jeff Shrimpton. Jeff is an ActionCoach, and one of the things he talks about is being above or below the line. When you’re above the line, you’re being accountable and taking responsibility. But when you’re below the line, you’re seeking to blame others and make excuses if things aren’t going well.    It’s probably important to say that, at the time I was working with Jeff, things were already pretty bad in my business. That business couldn’t be saved, but I learned compelling lessons that stood me in great stead for the next phase of my journey.    When my business when bust, it was tough. It was tough on me, my children, my wife, friends, and staff.    It would have been easy to blame the contracts we’d been working on, making excuses that framework rates made it impossible to deliver the work and make a profit. But ultimately, doing that would have been ignorant. I wouldn’t have been taking accountability for the decisions I’d made that had brought the company to the point of failure. And I’d probably have made the same mistakes again.   That’s when failure is a negative!.   I’ve talked before about the toll losing my home and business took on my mental health. But, by holding myself accountable, I reflected on what had gone wrong, documented it, and made sure I never made the same mistakes again in the future.    You have to exercise your accountability muscles regularly, which can be challenging. But the more you do it, the better you’ll become and the faster you’ll recover next time things don’t go to plan.    And that’s step one of failing forward.   If you’re enjoying the Fail Forward podcasts, follow me on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok or LinkedIn for all the latest on my mission to help business owners Fail Forward.    Facebook https://www.facebook.com/failforwardhenri LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/henri-ghijben-539132101/ TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@failforward12 Instagram https://www.instagram.com/henrighijben/