Leaders Find Accountability Partners to Help Them Cement New Habits
LEADERS FIND ACCOUNTABILITY PARTNERS TO HELP THEM CEMENT NEW HABITS
This past week I was reminded of a powerful lesson I learned several decades ago. It involves the power of including others in our desire to create new habits.
In his daily blog, “Leadership Freak,”my friend Dan Rockwell mentioned five steps to making habits that create your future:
-Notice current habits
-Tap your imagination about making habits
-Begin very small with a series of small wins
-Practice habit stacking
-Include others
It was this fifth and final tip from Dan that reminded me of the concept of accountability partners. So much has been written about creating new positive habits for ourselves during the past decade. Some of the most popular book titles include:
-Atomic Habits by James Clear
-The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg
-Million Dollar Habits by Stellan Moreira -Tiny Habits by BJ Fogg
Of course the most-read book about habits has been “The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People” by Stephen Covey. The content of that book has been taught in schools from kindergarten through graduate school, in the armed forces and in businesses around the world. I taught the workshop based on that book for 25 years at Georgetown University.
One of the concepts popularized by Covey was the importance of an accountability partner when we are striving to make significant changes in our lives.
Who can our accountability partner be?
-Someone who believes in our aspirations -Someone who believes in our capabilities
-Someone who trusts us and who we trust
-Someone with whom we can communicate on a regular basis
-Someone who is willing to hold us accountable and tell us the truth
-Someone who we can be truthful with regarding our feelings and our hopes
-Someone who will not think any less of us if and when we fall down and who can help us get back up
One need not live close to or work with an accountability partner. Accountability partners can hel help us from anywhere in the world as long as we allow them to serve in that role, providing us with tough love, wise feedback and compassionate caring.
Do you need an accountability partner right now? If so I invite you to select one this week.
Then ask him or her to fulfill the rule in order to help you develop and maintain a great new habit!
If you believe this content would resonate with a friend or colleague, please feel free to forward it along!
-Larry