It’s still early in the new year, so whether you find yourself already slipping on your 2020 resolutions or whether they’ve totally fallen by the wayside, accountability could be the issue. Maybe you’ve noticed – people who hold themselves accountable for their actions tend to accomplish more. But how do you go about holding yourself accountable? Whether you want to lose weight, be a better leader, or save up for that trip of a lifetime, here are six practical things you can do to stay on track and reach your goals:
Determine Why Your Goal Matters
Let’s face it. One of the main reasons we don’t accomplish our goals is that we’re busy. Things that we want to do get pushed aside for things that we feel we must do because we view them as being more important. Basically, we prioritize one thing over the other. That’s why, when setting a goal or making a resolution, it’s important to justify why it’s important to you, and also how important it is to you. For example, if you made a resolution to lose 40 pounds before summer, do you want to accomplish this goal so you can fit into some old clothes at the back of your closet or because you want to be healthier and live longer? While the former might not be all that important in the grand scheme of things, the latter could justify prioritizing your goal above other tasks on your to-do list.
Book Time on Your Calendar
No matter how many meetings you have packed into a day, you likely squeeze them all in. That’s because you’ve blocked off specific time for them. You can do the same thing to meet your goals. Just block off time on your calendar every day or every week to do things like workout at the gym, take a class, meet with a mentor, or whatever tasks are required to help you achieve your goals.
Use Visual Motivators
Post images or notes where you can easily see them to keep yourself motivated. For example, if your goal is to travel to France, post photos and posters in your office of the places that you want to go and the things you want to see. If you want to lose weight, post a photo of yourself when you were skinnier to remind you what you’ll look like when you finally reach your goal. Leave yourself notes of encouragement saying “You Can Do It” or to remind yourself how far you’ve come so far.
Track Your Progress
Knowing that you’re making progress toward your goals means you’ll be more likely to stick to them. You can keep track of your progress using many different methods, ranging from keeping a journal or using a chart to using apps or electronic devices. There are many apps, for example, that can help you track your savings if your goal is to set aside money for retirement, or you can use a Fitbit to track your progress if you want to exercise more or get more sleep.
Reward Yourself Often
While your ultimate reward will be achieving your long-term goal, it’s important to set mini goals that you can reach fairly quickly. These will help you to stay on track. For example, if you want to cut caffeine out of your diet, maybe reward yourself after sticking to this for two weeks, and then again after six weeks. The reward can be anything you want, from a night out at a new restaurant you’ve been wanting to try to that fishing pole you’ve been eyeing at the sporting goods store.
Get Back on Track Quickly
Often, even when we’ve made some good progress with our resolutions or goals, we get discouraged when we slip up. We view our slip-up as failure and then decide that since we’ve “broken” our resolution, there’s no point in continuing. In reality, if we’d forgive ourselves at these times and then continue on the trajectory toward our goals, we would ultimately achieve them. So, don’t get discouraged by slip-ups and throw in the towel. A better strategy when you slip up is to accept that you’re only human and agree to take a break for the rest of that day. Then start afresh the next day with a positive mindset that you will stay on track, and you will eventually succeed.
