The Value of an Accountability Partner

No one achieves a goal on their own.

No one.

True success is the work of many hands and hearts, in unison, as it should be.

When you consider goal setting and achievement, the concept of accountability challenges you to take stock of your responsibilities and how they can be met, safely and successfully. And when I say safely, I don’t mean risk-averse. I mean without possibly killing yourself from overwhelm, burnout or breakdown. Add “partner” to “accountability” and you’ve got all the makings of success, right within reach.

According to a study done by ATD (Association for Talent Development), here are the statistics for the probability of completing a goal:

- 10% if you hear an idea

- 40% if you decide when you will do it

- 50% if you plan how you will do it

- 65% if you commit to someone else you will do it

- 95% if you have a specific accountability partner and scheduled meetings

Who sets a goal with the intention of NOT seeing it through to fruition? Hands? Anyone?

Exactly!

But finding a reliable accountability partner can be hard. Working with friends or associates that have similar goals can help in the immediate, but life often gets in the way of our plans and sometimes, those meetings can fall by the way side.

Having a third-party accountability partner solves a few issues:

1. You are starting with a clean slate.

2. You can get an objective point of view and guidance/support on achieving your goals.

3. You gain access to a different experience and a different network to leverage in

achieving your goals.

And as per ATD, the research bears out that the key ingredient to goal achievement is not just accountability, but a partner to hold you to what you say you’re going to do.

How many times have you decided to work on a new project and decided mid-way through to scrap it for any number of reasons? And it was easy to just drop new projects because you were probably the only one that new about or could easily explain it away to others that there wasn’t enough time or resources or energy or money. I said in a previous post that it’s not about motivation, it’s about discipline. Having an accountability partner is an additional measure to ensure discipline. When you acknowledge that you need support (and we all do), working with a partner is the next logical step.

So what does it look like when I work with my clients as their accountability partner?

Well first, we get CLEAR on our vision. What does your ideal life look like, in all areas? How do your relationships function? How do you take care of yourself? How does your career and money look? What are you doing for personal development and growth? What are the projects you’d like to start/continue and need help figuring out next steps?

Next, we create a realistic plan of action. We take those visions and convert them into goals with benchmarks in place so that we have a better idea of the roadmap. You can’t get anywhere near a destination if you have no idea of the direction and means of transportation. Being realistic about next steps is the most import part of this process because it forces you to be honest with yourself – about your motivation, your discipline, your resources, your abilities and where you need support.

Next, we make sure to set good intentions and use positive self-talk. Setting intentions, especially in regard to your goals and implemented at the top of every week is a game changer. In using the LifeCode 90-day planner, I’ve set weekly intentions that have guided my progress throughout the week. It’s usually a word, but can also be a short phrase, that serves as a reminder of what I am focused on that week, in order to get one step closer to that ideal life.

Mindfulness

Patience

Self-care

Wellness

Clarity

Courage

Authenticity

Joy

Love

Acceptance

Curiosity

Balance

Creativity

Freedom

Prosperity

Possibility

Success

And these are just a few. But they serve in grounding the week for whatever life throws at you. You can use it to focus and re-focus, whenever you get thrown off track.

Finally, we remind ourselves that it's progress, not perfection. Every step you make in the direction of achieving your goals is further than you were yesterday, last week, last month, last year. Often, we use the achievements of others as the metric for our progress, when we don’t know their journey or their story. Focusing on our own progress will maintain forward momentum and develop the discipline we need to see all our goals through to fruition.

And it's not just about my work with others. I can speak from personal experience and say that being a part of a weekly accountability group has also been a great enhancement to achieving my goals as well. In the last 2 months of 2020, I was able to cross off all 8 of my short-term to-do's...and I'm still going strong!

So my advice to you, in creating your ideal life and growing your goals is to get an accountability partner. Work with me so that I can help you get focused, remain in integrity with your word and support you in actualizing your wildest dreams.