I used to talk to this guy who would constantly say he wanted to change his life.
New weeks would come, and he’d miraculously have a new plan.
New goals.
New motivation.
One week he wanted to finally get disciplined. The next week he wanted to start a business. The week after that he wanted to focus on getting healthy.
The problem was…
He never stuck to anything long enough to see real results.
At first, I thought he just didn’t know how to motivate himself. But the more I’ve learned about people over the years, motivation rarely is the issue.
The real problem is accountability.
Most people love the sounds of success but struggle with the daily grind and discipline it takes when no one is watching.
That’s why learning how to hold yourself accountable is absolutely crucial.
When you know how to hold yourself accountable, you’re far more likely to follow through with your commitments. It keeps you going when inspiration runs out. Keeps you from making excuses and constantly starting over.
Truthfully, if you cannot rely on yourself to stick to your plans, it’s almost impossible to build confidence in anything.
Yet accountability is something you can learn. Something you can get good at if you want to.
If you’re tired of quitting before you begin. Tired of coming up with reasons why you can’t do something until “the time is right.” It’s time to learn how to become someone who follows through.
Here are 10 incredibly helpful tips that will teach you how to hold yourself accountable.
1. Stop Waiting For Motivation
Many people wait until they “feel motivated” before they take action. Wrong.
Motivation is great, but it is not something you should rely on. Some days you will feel like grinding and being productive. Other days you will feel lazy, tired, unfocused, and emotionally drained.
Do not make your consistency dependent on how you feel.
People who hold themselves accountable understand this. They focus more on developing routines and systems that do not require motivation to function. Instead of asking themselves, “Do I feel like doing this today?” they ask, “What did I say I was going to do?”
Shifting your mindset in this way will change your life. Because once you don’t rely on emotions to take action, you will never stop holding yourself accountable.
Self discipline is a superpower. Don’t overlook the power of discipline.
Read also: 8 Simple Tips to Master Self-Discipline
2. Set Clear Goals
Another reason people struggle with accountability is because their goals are too vague.
“I want to be successful.”
“I want to better myself.”
Sounds great, but what does that even mean? If your goals aren’t clear, you’ll have no idea what actions to take.
Your goals should be specific. You should have a clear idea of what you want and what success looks like.
Maybe you want to get healthier. Great. Now be specific. Exercise 4 days this week. Stop drinking sodas and sugary drinks for the next 30 days. Now you have concrete standards you can measure yourself against.
When your goals are clear and specific, it becomes a lot easier to stay accountable.
Read also: 9 Common Goal-Setting Mistakes You Should Avoid
3. Be Honest With Yourself
This is where accountability really starts. A lot of people think they have excuses for why they aren’t holding themselves accountable. But deep down, they already know the truth.
They know they spend too much time procrastinating.
They know they avoid things that make them slightly uncomfortable.
They know they waste too much time watching TV or scrolling on their phone.
The problem is, instead of admitting this to themselves, they make up believable excuses.
You need to stop doing this. Learn how to hold yourself accountable by telling the truth, even when it sucks.
Life is hard. Things don’t always go your way. But at the end of the day, you always have choices. Learn to ask yourself the tough questions.
“What mistakes am I making that I know about?”
“How can I improve?”
Once you accept responsibility for your actions, you can finally improve.
Read also: 150 Self-Reflection Questions for Personal Growth
4. Create Systems
Willpower is great, but it goes away quickly when you’re tired, hungry, stressed, or overwhelmed with emotions.
If you got things you want to do but just never seem to find time or feel motivated, create systems to make those things easier to do.
Want to read more books? Keep books around you instead of fiction movies. Throw less junk in your pantry so eating healthy is easier.
Highly accountable people always focus on creating an environment that makes good habits easier to achieve.
Ask yourself what you can improve about your lifestyle. Your excuses become a lot weaker when your lifestyle supports your goals.
5. Track Your Progress
If you’re not tracking your progress, you’re cheating yourself.
Part of staying accountable is measuring where you are. Too many people let weeks go by without looking at where they spent their time.
When you track your time and habits, it forces you to pay attention. Suddenly you’re less likely to “forget” to spend an hour reading or go to the gym.
It creates awareness. And with enough consistency, you’ll start to hold yourself accountable without feeling like you have to track everything.
6. Keep The Small Promises You Make Yourself
Are you trustworthy?
How many times have you told yourself you would wake up early, hit the snooze button until noon, and promise you’ll do it tomorrow?
Trust is earned. If you want to hold yourself accountable, start keeping the small promises you make yourself.
You don’t have to follow through perfectly ever. But if you start trusting yourself with small promises, you’ll quickly build a reputation with yourself.
I trust myself to wake up early each day because I’ve proven to myself time and time again that I will.
Start doing this. Start building your trust with yourself, and you’ll see yourself improve without even trying.
7. Take Action Now
People always say, “You’re young and you have time.” Time waits for no one.
I’m not saying you need to figure everything out tomorrow. But stopping forward progress until you have it all figured out only hurts you.
Learn to take action while you’re uncomfortable. Learn to improve bit by bit each day instead of waiting for your life to magically fall into place.
Doing something consistently will always outpace waiting for motivation.
8. Have Someone To Help Keep You Accountable
It’s great to be able to hold yourself accountable, but sometimes it helps to have someone in your corner who keeps you accountable as well.
That could be a mentor, friend, life coach, or simply a small group of friends who push each other to be their best.
Find someone who is willing to ask you the tough questions.
Just make sure you don’t surround yourself with yes men. Some of the best accountability partners will tell you things you don’t want to hear.
9. Practice Self Forgiveness
You are only human. Accepting responsibility and holding yourself accountable does not mean beating yourself up over every mistake.
Forgive yourself for mistakes, learn what you can, and apply those lessons moving forward.
If you miss the gym one day, it does not mean you should quit on your health journey. Learn from it and continue pushing forward.
You’ll fail yourself if you let one mistake defeat you.
10. Become A Person of Integrity
Accountability and identity are deeply linked.
Look at how you describe yourself. Do you see yourself as someone who sticks to their plans? Someone who overcommits and never follows through?
I encourage you to take control of your identity.
Start telling yourself you’re the type of person who does what you say.
Let that become your identity.
You won’t have to “force” yourself to be accountable when it becomes who you are.
Conclusion
Mastering how to hold yourself accountable is something that will change your life. Your goals. Your habits. Your confidence. Your discipline.
Truth is, if you want to improve your life, you’re going to have to figure out how to make things happen without someone looking over your shoulder.
You’re going to have to learn how to push through laziness and discouragement.
Trust me, I know it sucks sometimes. But the more you practice holding yourself accountable, the easier it becomes.
And once you build that level of self discipline and consistency, there will be nothing you can’t do.
FAQ
Why can’t I hold myself accountable?
Many people have issues with accountability because they struggle with procrastination, lack of structure, motivation, fear, and emotional issues. Learn how to build better routines and stop relying on motivation to take action.
How do I stop making excuses?
As soon as you confront the facts about yourself and take responsibility, you won’t feel the need to make excuses anymore.
How does accountability help with motivation?
Once you hold yourself accountable and build discipline, you won’t have to feel motivated to do everything. You’ll build systems that keep yourself moving no matter how you feel.
How do I stop putting things off?
Create systems that make it easier to do the things you want to do. Stop saying you’ll do it tomorrow and just start doing it now.
Is holding yourself accountable good?
Building accountability is great for your confidence, character, and personality. If you struggle with taking action, learning how to hold yourself accountable is one of the best skills you can learn.
How long does it take to build self accountability?
Building self accountability takes time, but with enough consistency, you will improve. Small changes over a long period of time are far more effective than burning out and doing nothing.
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