We need to be held accountable to succeed at anything — this is how I do it with my Health and Fitness
If you have no one to answer to, it’s so tough to stay on track.
It’s so much easier to quit when you’re only answering to yourself because no one will ever know that you quit (whatever project/task/assignment you were doing).
I know this from experience.
I can’t tell you how many little projects I’ve left unfinished over the last 10 years. It feels like I literally have nothing to show. When you’re only answering to yourself, it’s easier to deal with the ‘embarrassment’ of quitting.
Accountability is one of the most powerful tools on this planet.
Why else do Fortune 100 and Fortune 500 companies have a board of advisors?
Those companies know that there is massive strength in numbers too. They’re capitalizing on the power of accountability through their boards of advisors to ensure they stay on track.
I know how important it is to stay active. I know we should all be striving for a better, healthier lifestyle. I’m not a doctor or expert… anything I might say here is strictly my own, personal opinion. But we all know each of us could be a bit healthier.
So I would start going to the gym… I’d get on a good streak… and then I’d fall off the wagon. Maybe it was an unexpected long weekend or maybe it was a planned, weeklong vacation. Or maybe I just didn’t get up early enough to make it to the gym that day. I would THRIVE on these streaks. Once I had a few good days under my belt, it would serve as an extra bit of motivation to get mY ASS TO THE GYM. But once that streak was gone, I would lose that motivation. So that one missed day turned into 2 and then 3 and then 7 days. No one was there to hold me accountable. No one was there hounding me to get to the gym. Or to ask how my workout was. There was no accountability, and it was much easier to hide my ended streak because it was only me who was watching.
Another gym streak lost — another piece to add to my list of unfinished business.
I know how important it is to stay active. And it’s one thing to hit your fitness goals. But I’m not as interested in the gainz as I am in cementing a healthy habit of exercise.
I want to remain fit and active throughout my life. Not just during the summers. I know how important it is so why wouldn’t I work towards it?
April of this year, I did.
I made this little spreadsheet (much ♥️ to Google Sheets) that tracks different areas of my life.
- Career
- Health
- Investing
- Publishing
- Social media
I’m not gonna go into detail about each one for this post… but I’ve already seen tremendous results in my Health pillar.
I track every single weight I lift and every single workout I do. And I’ve set it up to give me a daily score that adds up to a weekly total each Sunday. I’ve got a tangible number in front of me that represents ME. I own that number. And my goal is to beat that number each week.
And every Tuesday morning at 4:20am, I send out a recap of the previous week to a handful of people.
This does a couple things:
- It allows me to focus on the process. I know that I have to put the time and effort in if I want a good score for the week, so I need to focus only on the process. I don’t care what I look like or what the scale says at the end of the week, I only care that I previously put that time and effort in to get a higher score.
- Competition. I want to hit and beat my previous week’s number. I’m only focused on that. I’m not worried about what other guys around me are doing. I’m only trying to beat ME. (It also helps that I’m obsessed with data, percentages, and competition haha.)
- It holds me accountable because I have eyes on me now. I’ve made my intentions and goals a bit public now through my weekly recap.
Many times already I’ve felt that accountability too. I know these people are watching me—even if they don’t say anything. I can see they’re opening my emails and that’s enough for me to push through any little excuse I have for that day. It’s incredible, honestly.
(I’ve felt it in my other areas that I’m tracking too… this is just for my Health/fitness pillar.)
I don’t even remember how I came up with the idea of tracking areas of my life like this. I remember it was sometime late 2020 though. I was getting burnt the f*ck out with almost everything, and I knew I needed to make a change if I wanted any kind of chance. I started tracking some of the data in December 2020 and FINALLY put together my little spreadsheet/tool in April 2021.
Listen, I don’t work out NEARLY as hard as you probably think I do. You might be thinking I go f*cking hogwild simply because that’s the type of person who’d track their workouts in a spreadsheet haha. My workouts were very easy at first. My only goal was to cement the habit of working out. I just needed to make sure I put the time in each day and eventually the habit would take hold. And progress would come from there. (It definitely did too!)
After a few weeks (even days for some folks), you’ll start to increase the intensity of your workouts naturally. You’ll see small bits of progress & you’ll have your daily streak… both of those serve as incredible motivators. And the second someone ELSE notices your effort? It’s like cocaine.
(I’ve never tried cocaine but the wording sounded good lol)
Once YOU start noticing your own progress (you’ll probably be one of the last people), your habit will be just that. Habitual. You’ll never want to stop.
Most people overdo it in the beginning. They crush themselves at the gym… they might even get a good workout too, but they’ll dread going the next day. You MUST set the habit first before ever diving in headfirst if you want to give yourself the best chance.
If you decide tomorrow is your Day 1, make sure you tell someone. You need an accountability buddy. If you’re not comfortable asking anyone you personally know, ask me. You can send me a DM on Twitter (@kyledackerman) or even comment on this article here.
Accountability is a tool we must all take advantage of. And there’s no better day to start than today. (Second best day is tomorrow.)
I’ve applied it in different areas of my life (I call them pillars). If you might want to see how this could apply to you, please feel free to reach out. Maybe we can put together a little spreadsheet for you. If you don’t know how to use it, I’ll teach you. It’s stupid simple.
You need a number to own. And you need eyes on you to hold you accountable. If you have those 2 things, you’re levels above of your peers. And you’ll actually give yourself a chance.
Toodles ♥️
