Last week I talked a little about accountability; how I was able to hold myself accountable. I have to confess: I’m very good at letting myself down. I know I am not alone. What is the key to making myself get up at 4:40 am so that I can participate in a 5 am writers group? What causes that kind of craziness…I mean commitment?
One of the recommendations I got from a book was finding an accountability partner. Someone who would hold me to what I wanted to get done. I looked at this line item on my 90 day plan for a while. It seemed so scary. Should I hire someone? Do I have to pay a coach or an editor to do this? Do I need to give myself this stringent a deadline? “No…”my little devil whispered in my left ear. “You can do this on your own.” That saucy little minx seemed to be onto something, until I listened to the spirit animal sitting on my right shoulder “You haven’t done it so far. You need help.”
Why is it so easy to let ourselves down but not other people? Maybe you don’t suffer from this particular form of procrastination, but I do. If I really want to, I can let all the roadblocks in the world get in the way of the easy 5 minute task that needs to be done. Especially if it’s painful (like the laundry for the 5 guys I live with). I eventually reached out to a friend of mine who has a particular affinity for books and has read some of my ramblings when I get stuck. I was quite honestly terrified she’d think I was crazy with my request, say no, label me as “off the deep end,” and block my text messages. However, the exchange went something like this:
“Can I ask you a favor? I need an accountability partner to write my book”
“Is that like a fact checker?!?”
“Omg, no. Just someone to make sure I’m actually writing. I’m thinking maybe I text you every night to confirm I wrote that day, and if I go a few days without actually writing, you may have to give me a talking to”
“Phew-cuz I’m bad at remembering dates/events. LoL but sure, I can do that”
I had been scared she’d say no, and within 5 minutes I had someone else looped in on my scheme. Someone who I just couldn’t let down. She’s been too good a friend, for too long. She is now in this with me, and I MUST succeed. Since we started this 2 months ago, drafts get finished faster. I now write 3-4 different projects regularly, and have more time to spend with my family. How is that even possible?
I have a manifestation journal that also helps keep me on track. Yes, I have to go back and check things off, but it has really helped. While I have used many in the last 2 years to get myself moving, I would highly recommend the current one I’m using to really get focused. It can be purchased on Amazon, or directly from the company (I think) here. It’s a 90 day planner and I will admit, a lot of things have happened in 90 days. On the sad side, my 90 days is almost up. While I love checking things off I’m not sure (yet) if I want to keep buying another one of these every 3 months.
So, over the next week I’m going to start transferring my newer habits into an app. I did some quick research (i.e. I looked at the one that had the most stars on the IOS App Store) and will be trying Habit Tracker for the next week. If you’re thinking about this, you might want to start by reading an actual article like this one and then making a choice. For me, I’m going to see how my spin of the wheel goes. I’ve put in two habits: “Write anything” and “Promote/Partner.” Let’s see how this goes.
What is that thing you wrote down last week? That thing that’s been gnawing at you that you want to achieve? That goal you want to go for? What’s the first step?
Ok…now how do you hold yourself accountable to that? Ask a friend who you can’t let done? Find a paper planner? Make a list on a white board? Use an app? Pick a method that suits you, and let me know what happens.
In Laughter,
Megan
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