My word is my bond.
This has been my basic principle since birth. It's how I've done business for the last 20 years. Most of my clients don't need contracts with me because when I say something, I do it.
If you say something, you do it. Otherwise, you don't say it. It's as simple as that.
That's the foundation of any accountability system. But keeping your word isn't about willpower. It's about building systems that make it inevitable and about knowing and staying true to your values. Staying true to your values is the same as staying true to your systems.
Most people think accountability is about being disciplined or having strong character. That's backwards.
Willpower fails because it depends on how you feel in the moment. Systems succeed because they work regardless of motivation.
I don't rely on feeling motivated to keep commitments. I build processes that make it automatic to follow through. When I decide to do something - exercise regularly, maintain routines, learn new skills - I build a system that makes it happen automatically. And I'm good at it. My systems work. That's why I became a systems engineer.
Take language learning as an example. I speak eight languages fluently. That's not because I'm incredibly smart, but because I build systems and routines and processes that automatically lead to success.
It's not the smartest one or the most lucky one or the most gifted one that has success. It's the one that keeps going, has entrepreneurial spirit, and builds systems and processes along the way to keep everything in check both on the personal level and on the business level.
The accountability comes from the system, not from just trying harder.
In business, accountability systems prevent the gap between what you promise and what you deliver. I learned this lesson dramatically when a friend called me about a construction project crisis.
He had invested in a big construction project. Two weeks before the crucial delivery date, nothing was ready. The inmates were running the asylum. This was a big project - 10 three-bedroom villas, all sold out, all rented out. His guests were coming. None of the villas were ready. Sub-standard quality. No leadership. No clear communication. Complete and utter chaos.
He wasn't in the country and invited me to go have a look. I arrived there, called him, and said: "You have a serious issue. This is not going to work."
So he hired me to build a system, to project manage and save the project. Two weeks later, almost the entire project was delivered. All quality parameters were in check.
The reason why that worked is the same as with everything. I come into a situation, I look, I observe, I identify the key bottlenecks and key priorities. You look at what needs to be finished today to guarantee success in a week and what can be postponed until next week because it's not crucial. You only start with the red flag priorities. Around that, you build a system, you build a process, you build a structure. You understand how all the stakeholders work together and then you just make it work. You press where, and on who, you need to press with a single goal in mind: getting the job done.
In the 21st century, we've invented a complex lingo to do this, but in the end it's just common business sense. It’s just simple Flemish peasant brains at work.
This is why I can work without contracts. The system guarantees the outcome, not just the intention.
Don't create huge expectations with fancy words and big titles if you can't execute. Keep it on the down-low until you have systems that work.
I see entrepreneurs make promises they can't keep because they get excited about possibilities instead of focusing on capabilities. Most business failures happen because people commit to things they can't systematically execute. They say yes to deadlines without building processes to meet them.
I do the opposite. I only commit to things I have systems to deliver.
Better to under-promise and over-deliver than to create expectations you can't meet systematically.
Here's how I design accountability systems that actually work:
Before saying yes to anything, ask: "Can I build a reliable process to make this happen?" If the answer is no, don't commit. Either build the system first, or don't make the promise. This is not accounting for the “entrepreneurial phase” of any new project or business.
You need to make sure both in personal and business life that success and the systems are almost guaranteed.
For personal commitments, make the right choice obvious. If you want to become fit through exercise, put the dumbbells or yoga mat in the middle of the living room so you stumble across it. Prepare your gym clothes before you go to bed.
For business success, approach your customers, stakeholders, and employees at the same moment every time. Check in with them: "Hey, how is this going?" Every single time, the same moment.
Put banners on the wall if it's in a production facility. Send the reminders, send check-ins. You need to follow up. You need to build a system. Make it obvious, make it clear.
You can't manage what you don't measure. Build measurement into every commitment system. Track completion, not just effort. Track results, not just activities.
Systems need maintenance. Schedule regular times to evaluate whether your accountability systems are working. What commitments are you consistently meeting? What's breaking down? Where do the systems need adjustment?
When you consistently do what you say, several things happen:
People trust you more because your actions align with your words. This creates better business relationships and stronger personal connections.
You trust yourself more because you know you can rely on your own commitments. This makes it easier to take on bigger challenges.
Your systems get stronger because you're constantly refining processes that work and eliminating ones that don't.
This principle has guided everything I've built - businesses, relationships, personal development, professional growth.
When your actions consistently align with your words, people notice. More importantly, you notice.
You become someone who can be counted on, starting with being able to count on yourself.
That's the foundation of any successful system - business or personal.
Get in touch: laurent.terrijn@gmail.com
