Accountability - The Key To Success
The first Get Lifting 6 Week Transformation Challenge begins next Monday. Registration is closed and we have a group of people that are ready to get started.
When launching the challenge there was a ton of questions on what it was about - what were people going to get? How would this help them exercise more, eat better and lose weight?
Education is a big part of what we do here - informing people on the best decisions to make and what not to do in order to get the results they want. The problem with information is that it is useless if you don't implement it!
If you are someone that is self-motivated you may be able to take information on board and implement it to achieve your desired results. However, a lot of people aren't self-motivated.
I quickly worked out that I wasn't selling people on the education side of things - I was creating an environment that made them accountable for their actions.
I deal with people every day that are incredibly successful in their professional lives but when it comes to health and fitness they draw a blank - they struggle to exercise regularly, eat well and manage their lifestyle for optimal health.
Their issue isn't is that they are 'lazy' or 'can't do it' - they just lack accountability.
Does that sound like you too?
See, when you're at school you're kept accountable - you have your parents and teachers that work tirelessly to keep you on track when you are struggling or not putting in the work that you should be.
When you're at work you have supervisors and managers - their job it is to oversee that your are putting in the work you need to be to get the desired result for the company your work for.
But when it comes to your health? There's no one really there to keep you on track but yourself!
A lack of accountability when it comes to exercising regularly or eating better is ultimately where people meet their downfall.
It doesn't have to be like that though! There are things you can do to keep yourself accountable.
Before this though, get crystal clear on what it is that you want to achieve. Do you want to lose 10lbs? Do you want to start exercising 2 days a week? Do you want to eat a more balanced, nutritious diet?
Make a micro-commitment and write this goal down - you're more likely to stick to it if you physically write it down.
The next step - tell people what you want to achieve and how you plan on doing it. This makes you socially accountable!
No one wants to look silly, and by putting yourself out there and defining your goals to other people not only makes your more likely to try extra hard to achieve them, you also make them a part of the journey to your goals. They can be there to provide support when it gets tough and you feel like you want to give up.
Another step you can take is to surround yourself with people that are on a similar journey to you e.g. our transformation challenge group. Teaming up with people that are aiming to achieve what you are means that you have a support network of people that know what you're going through. This can serve as a source of motivation and inspiration - you can get new ideas that will help you to get your best results and they can keep you on track when you feel like giving up.
So you have your micro-commitment, your social accountability and your support network. What else could you do?
Hire a professional!
In hiring a professional you have made a further commitment to achieving you goals (a financial one), you have recruited a source of certified knowledge and made yourself accountable to yet another person.
In following these three steps yoou've created an environment in which it is incredibly hard to fail - you've put your social credibility and finances on the line and surrounded yourself with knowledge, motivation, and inspiration.
All of this makes you accountable for your actions - you're less likely to skip a workout with a trainer if you know you're going to lose money. You might avoid that chocolate binge because you don't want to look like a failure to your peers.
So, to improve your accountability and therefore your success you should:
Write your goal down (micro-commitment)
Tell people about your goal (social proof)
Hire a professional (further commitment and social proof as well a source of motivation and knowledge)
Now, this post is obviously designed with the goal being improving you the appearance of your body as well as your health and fitness, but it is applicable to any goals you may have..
Maybe your goal is to start your own business or to write a book.
What ever it is, taking the above steps will ensure that you are kept accountable and far more likely to achieve success in reaching these goals.
Want to up your accountability game before the end of the year? Want to lose some weight before Christmas and feel fitter and healthier? Sign up to our 14 day transformation email course!
