We all have goals and dreams, therefore we need someone to hold us accountable. Someone that will encourage us to study for that exam when we just want to go to sleep. Gustavo Razzeti goes into detail on how having an accountability partner will increase chances of success in this article, but I’m going to explain my personal experiences of having an accountability partner. In the end I hope to give you an idea of getting one if you don’t have one already, and if you do, to cherish that person to the max.
Being a college student myself, it’s always hard for me to workout when I’m in school. I always say “I’m going to workout this Saturday!,” and end up sitting on my bed with a bag of potato chips catching up on my shows. But, when the campus shuts down for spring/fall break or the holidays that’s when I’m forced to go home and then forced to workout by my accountability partner a.k.a. (also known as) my mom.
Yeah, it may sound cute and you may have thought “awww” in your head, but I don’t feel that way when she encourages me to workout with her when I don’t feel like it whatsoever. I care about my mom though, so because I care about her, sometimes I don’t workout for myself I workout for her so she can see improvements in herself as well. So in the end it’s technically a win win in my book.
When you have an accountability partner it’s not just for you, but for the other person too. When my mom and I workout together and we’re laying on the floor doing six inches, there will be times I just want to give up, but then I look over at her and think to myself “if she can do it then so can I.”
My mom and I push each other to take our exercise to the next level, and that’s part of what having an accountability partner is all about. When I leave home I walk out not only feeling better health wise, but also asking myself how we’re going to continue to do this while I’m in school.
When I was at home, another way my mom and I held each other accountable was through this app called habit share. Through this app you set goals for yourself and check-in with each other everyday to see if that goal got completed or not. I absolutely love this app and would encourage you to download it.
Coming back this past time from winter break, I felt more motivated and even though my mom isn’t with me in school, we keep up with each other through the app. We tried to come up with another method and workout together through facetime, but that didn’t go as well. Overall though, I will say I’m more accountable for myself due to having an accountability partner and now having the app.
According to the entrepreneur, “the American Society of Training and Development found that people are 65 percent likely to meet a goal after committing to another person. Their chances of success increase to 95 percent when they build in ongoing meetings with their partners to check in on their progress (Wissman, 2018.)”
No matter what stage of life you’re in, having a accountability partner is beneficial. Also, don’t forget you can have multiple different accountability partners for different things. I hope sharing my story of my mom being my accountability partner when it comes to working out will at least give you an idea of getting one yourself.
Remember, you can’t do everything alone, especially as a college student. It’s okay and I encourage you to have someone who will push you to that next level health wise, school wise, etc. Here’s to us holding each other accountable and becoming a more accountable uni.
Healthy Uni 