Why Ask for Help with Accountability?

A quick Google search will show many quotes exist about relying on other humans for help:

“Asking for help is never a sign of weakness. It's one of the bravest things you can do. And it can save your life." — Lily Collins

“I believe the world is one big family and we need to help each other.” — Jet Li

"Somewhere along the way, we must learn that there is nothing greater than to do something for others." — Martin Luther King Jr.

Yet when it comes to everyday tasks such as accomplishing goals, we frequently feel we have to do it alone. When I started down the road of entrepreneurship, I tried to do everything by myself. Admittedly, I quickly became lost in the land of overwhelm and found it challenging to make decisions. I frequently went down the rabbit hole of needing to learn “just one more thing” before taking action because I didn’t know what action to take. Furthermore, even if I settled on some steps, I found it difficult to hold myself accountable. I finally started making strides when my neighbor and friend said she could help. Her business focused on marketing and social media for small business owners. One meeting with her helped me break those goals down and what was better was she checked in on me to see how I was doing. Knowing someone else was following up helped me feel like I wasn’t doing this alone and I started taking steps.

Having difficulty completing goals on our own isn’t uncommon. A study by The American Society of Training and Development (ASTD) found that people setting goals for improved healthcare were successful between 8% and 26% when completing on their own. However, those with an accountability partner increased their chances to 65%.

Here are a few things accountability does:

It shows you are human and have vulnerabilities.

We are all human and, therefore, all flawed. Asking for help with accountability demonstrates you are human and not perfect. It is hard for me to ask for help, but once I dropped the resistance and asked for help, I developed a plan that worked for me and had an easier time keeping on track with my tasks. What shows more vulnerability than admitting you need help?

Improves your connectivity with others

People naturally gravitate to others they admire and view as self-assured. When you work with others to hold yourself accountable, you show you are responsible for your actions and therefore develop a greater sense of mutual trust and respect. These attributes suggest that you are more likely to have a stronger emotional connection with others. Strong relationships will support you, especially when working with a partner or a team to bring new ideas to fruition.

Demonstrates you are committed to your goal.

Answering to someone else about your next steps makes you far more likely to take some kind of action. Thinking about checking in and reporting to another person about what you have completed inspires us to act. Think about times you didn’t want to do something but knew you had a boss, teacher, friend, or family member to check in with and were able to find that energy to get it done.

May bring about fresh ideas and perspectives for your goals.

When you work with someone else to stay accountable, you welcome feedback and new perspectives. These ideas may help take you on another path you hadn’t thought of and consequently create more possibilities for developing your goals. Teaching is a powerful tool to increase your knowledge of a subject. By having someone ask you why you are taking specific steps, you may gain a more profound understanding and new ways of thinking regarding your process.

It helps set firm time limits.

What good is developing a goal if you have no sense of when you wish to accomplish it? I may have a weight loss goal in mind, but if I don’t determine when I want to achieve this goal, I may not take all the necessary steps to achieve this goal. Setting a specific timeline for a goal assists you with planning the particular tasks and creating all the steps needed to achieve the goal. When you share these deadlines with others, you are more likely to stick to your plan.

Change helps us to grow and prevent stagnation in our lives. However important it is, change is hard! Taking steps to make those improvements is far easier when you ask for assistance with accountability. So go ahead and ask a friend, family member, teacher, coach, coworker, or anyone you trust for help.