We can all talk about doing the right thing with our finances all day long. We can talk about making a budget, spending according to that budget, and living a frugal financial lifestyle. But, none of that makes any difference if we don’t walk that walk.
Sometimes, we can’t do that on our own. Sometimes it takes a wife, parent, sibling, or a friend to hold us accountable for our actions and for our progress towards our goals. Accountability has an incredible value to you. Some will quickly scoff and attribute a negative value to it, but it really isn’t a negative thing. And many who would scoff at it are merely afraid to accept any accountability for fear that they will be found failing.
The value of accountability is in it’s ability to push you towards your goals. If you set goals but there is no one who knows them and can hold you accountable, then there is no one (aside from yourself) who knows if you’ve failed. That’s safe for you, as failure isn’t usually something that we want publicized. But, it’s also bad for you. It makes it easier to fail. It makes it easier to simply move on from a failure and not learn from it.
Accountability won’t make you succeed. You’ll still need to do the footwork towards meeting your goals. What accountability does is give you that extra support from those that are holding you accountable towards making your goals. Don’t think of it as someone waiting for you to fail, or someone who is just waiting to rub in a misstep. Instead, think of those who hold you accountable as people who want you to succeed.
You should want to be held accountable. Search out those around you who truly want you to be healthy, and want you to succeed. Let them in on your goals and the steps that you are taking to making your goals happen. They’ll gladly help you and act as a positive force for your goals. Don’t be afraid of being accountable. Embrace it.
I started this blog to share what I know and what I was learning about personal finance. Along the way I’ve met and found many blogging friends. Please feel free to connect with me on the Beating Broke accounts: Twitter and Facebook.
You can also connect with me personally at Novelnaut, Thatedeguy, Shane Ede, and my personal Twitter.
This is a really good article. Some people think it’s not okay to talk about money but I have always had a couple friends that I discuss things with. They not only nicely point out if they think I’m on the wrong track but often hear my ideas and give me ideas to save money or be more efficient.
I was also just reading something about consequences. Allow others to have the consequences of their choices. This is the product of being accountible.
Hi-I find that the more you practice responsible behavior, the more it becomes a habit and the more you are accountable to yourself.
@Carol Yes. I think that having those friends to share with and help guide you are of utmost importance.
@Barb Good personal finance is all about making those habits and making them stick. I couldn’t agree more.
Hopefully, the need for accountability will lessen as we continue to have discipline. I know that some people have friends, family members, or even blog readers to help hold them accountable, but ultimately, we can still choose to ignore them!
But if we see that we have a hard time with discipline, then accountability is something that we will definitely need.
Great article, BB! When we take personal responsibility for everything we do, it is a big motivator for ensuring we always do the very best we can all the time.
(BTW, I love the clean design.)
All the best,
Len
Len Penzo dot Com
Nice article. Often times people would want to pass the blame to others. But if we really put ourselves accountable for our actions, we would really learn from our mistakes and be motivated to do what we are supposed to do