It has been my experience when addressing old habits whose usefulness has past its time, to solicit the accountability of a trustworthy peer or a wise mentor. In fact, I would venture to posit that I would not be the leader, much less the person, that I am today apart from the consistent accountability that I received through others at pivotal points in my life.

When I use the term accountability, I’m not talking necessarily about some nonchalant, evasive form of “accountability” that warms the hearts of both parties involve. Too much is at stake for such trivial, amusing games. Love confronts, with point-directed questions about the areas in need—without deflecting the real root issues. And, it is consistent, which is determined by the severity of the “bad habit” that is being addressed.

Are there any courses/training that could foster this kind of response in an organisation? I haven't seen too many. The only one that seems to approach these concepts is the Strategic Business Acumen course (offered by http://imia.edu.au).

Can anyone suggest any others?

Mr. Waterman lists four suggestions to breaking our comfort zones and thus erasing detrimental habits. His suggestions make sense and have merit. I would like to suggest a key component to the success of changing a behavior or habit which is a precursor to his four suggestions. First and foremost one must recognize the behavior. The very reason the behavior is called a habit is because it has moved to a subconscious level, it has become an automatic response. Only in the realization of our habits can we hope to change them. Then in realizing we must decide, we must decide to maintain or to extinguish the behavior. And in order to do that we must bring it to our active thought process. This idea goes along with the comments submitted by Brian. In which a trusted mentor can keep us on the "straight and narrow". But trusted individuals can also be used to help us see that which has become invisible to ourselves. Often this is referred to as coaching. Coaching is basically getting realistic feedback on our behaviors, with possible solutions in order to improve. Whether it is in sports or in business, coaches observe, evaluate, educate and hopefully motivate, which produces better results.

Positive reinforcement is indeed a powerful technique for breaking an old habits and establishing new ones. However, most organizations fail to apply positive reinforcement appropriately or consistently. As a result, new behaviors are unsustainable and people revert to the comfort of their old ways.