Dana was almost trembling when I showed up. The color was gone from her face. “I don’t think I did that right,” she finally spoke.

“Step me through it,” I asked.

“I had to talk to Taylor. He has been coming late, dawdling on the work he is supposed to get done, really snippy with everybody around him, like he has a chip on his shoulder.”

“So, what happened?”

Dana shook her head from side to side. “Well, I tried to be positive first, then the negative part, then finished it off with another positive. But I don’t think I got my point across. He thinks he is going to get a raise.”

The Accountability Conversation often sends mixed signals. Managers enter this conversation with cross purposes. From the team member, Managers are looking for

• A positive change in behavior
• A positive attitude through the change

One of these usually fails.