Goal Setting and Accountability

I wasn’t really sure what the topic of this post was going to be.  Goal setting or accountability.  Perhaps the two go hand in hand.  Let’s see where this goes.

First of all, let me begin by saying that I have not always been the best at setting goals.  I have always more or less had an infinite wish list.  Things that I wanted to do but never really set out to do them, know what I mean?  Here’s where the accountability part comes in … I believe part of the reason for that (besides being lazy) was that I did not want to be held accountable for the goal.  If I didn’t reach the goal than no one could judge me.

Accountability has been an issue for me as well.  I want to do what I do and not have a whole lot of conversation about it.  That’s probably why I’m single.  One of many reasons, but that is an entirely different post.  Coming together and making decisions with another person is not a strong suit of mine and I should probably work on that.

I’m saying all this to say this …

I co-lead a running group every Saturday.  And every Saturday I ask the participants “how many miles are you going to do today?” And every Saturday the majority of them shrug their shoulders and respond with “I don’t know.”  This bugs me.  Because they know doggone well how many they are going to do but if they say it out loud then they are committed to that number.  And if they don’t reach it, they will feel as though they have failed.

I get it.  I really do. 

But here’s the thing:  how can you reach a goal if you don’t set a goal?  And how can you feel great about reaching a goal if you never set it to begin with?  And how can others rejoice in your accomplishment and be inspired by you if you don’t share the goal in the first place?  And how can others support and encourage you if you fall short of the mark?

We need each other.  We need to be there for each other.  We need to make our desires known so we can get support from each other.  It’s important.  I never realized how important that was in my own life until recently.  I’m used to being a lone wolf and doing things on my own.  However, I’ve gotta tell you, when I set the goal to step on a stage on June 29^th, and let it be known – the support that I received was incredible and very much appreciated. 

I’m getting on stage again on September 14^th and my goal is to win the Figure overall and qualify to compete as a professional.  Big goal, I know. 

Thanks in advance for your support.