Personal Accountability at Work and in Life with John G. Miller | The Good Leadership Podcast #110

John Miller was born in 1958 in Ithaca, N.Y. His dad, Jimmy Miller, was the Cornell University wrestling coach and a small-town pastor. This is probably why John finds it so natural to coach and teach!

At 18, John asked 16-year-old, Karen, on a date and they married in June 1980. After being hired by Cargill off the Cornell U. campus to be a “grain trader,” John and Karen lived in three states in five years, finally settling in Minneapolis, MN. In early 1986, John began a new career providing leadership and sales management training to Twin Cities’ corporations from all industries.

This is how and when John created QBQ! The Question Behind the Question. Throughout a decade of selling and facilitating training for executives and managers, he discovered the incredible need for personal accountability. In 1995, he chose to become a keynote speaker, titling his sessions “Personal Accountability and the QBQ!”—even though some people told him that “personal accountability isn’t a topic.”

The QBQ Book: https://qbq.com/books/

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Website and live online programs: http://ims-online.com

Blog: https://blog.ims-online.com/

Podcast: https://ims-online.com/podcasts/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/charlesagood/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/charlesgood99

Chapters:

(00:00) Introduction

(01:00) John’s Background and the QBQ method

(03:19) Tool: The QBQ framework helps overcome blamestorming

(04:17) Technique: Importance of using what and how questions

(06:06) Tool: Avoiding why questions and victim thinking

(07:39) Tip: Stress is a choice, taking responsibility for our responses

(09:02) Tip: Starting questions with when leads to procrastination

(10:15) The origins of the QBQ method

(12:28) Tip: The danger of blaming others and not taking responsibility

(14:08) Tip: The story of beating the referee

(16:21) Technique: Focusing on what you can control

(18:06) Tip: Dispelling the myths of accountability

(19:24) Technique: Accountability starts with personal change

(21:31) Tip: The importance of personal accountability and focusing on oneself

(23:41) Tip: The importance of taking action and going above and beyond

(25:12) Tip: Story about Jacob going above and beyond

(29:32) Tip: The significance of doing something for others that you didn’t have to do

(31:42) Tool: Personal accountability as a moment-to-moment practice

(33:41) Key takeaway

(35:14) Conclusion