hold yourself accountable
In my last post, I mentioned the fact that accountability is a huge thing for me. From a young age, I’ve been an independent person, and I believe a large part of that independence can be attributed to a recognition (early on) of my intrinsic desire for accountability. I am someone who knows what she wants out of life, so for me, most situations and decisions I make boil down to three big things: accountability, time, and honesty.
Today I want to talk about accountability because it’s incredibly important. We all know how I feel about motivation, so keeping that in mind, it should be fairly easy to connect the dots.
When you’re a value-driven person, your motivation comes from within. Accountability goes hand-in-hand with self-reliance because when you’re an independent person, you are aware of and responsible for your actions. No one else needs to push you or motivate you; you are able to hold yourself accountable and motivate yourself.
Not everyone in the world is independent, but people who are dependent cannot become interdependent with others until they first become independent themselves. It’s a difficult process because it involves a lot of self-reflection, self-awareness, and breaking of old patterns. That type of inward-gazing can be hard because you might see some things about yourself you may not like. And that’s okay. The beautiful thing about the process is that you can change the things you don’t like, which leads to growth. And as I’ve said many times, life is about growing and evolving into the best version of yourself.
It sounds like a Catch-22 because there are many conflicting messages we receive on a daily basis in large part due to the wonderful world of advertising. We’re told to love ourselves, but we’re also told to look a certain way. I’m going to let you in on a little secret. Those messages we receive in advertisements are all money-driven in order to sell products. I know what you’re thinking - well, duh, Johny! And you’d be right. It’s so simple. But for something that’s so simple to understand, people really struggle with themselves and low self-esteem. It becomes that ego-based, constant comparison of oneself to others. And what have I said before about cases where the leading motivator is money? It’s external and ego-based. Starve that ego, baybeeeee; feed that soul!
I wish people loved themselves more. Life is hard, and it is a series of ups and downs, high and low tides. The only person worth comparing yourself to is a previous version of yourself, which is, again, motivation based internally. Accountability can be hard, but by holding yourself accountable, you end up with an ever-growing abundance of self-love. That self-love then leads to more accountability and even more self-love until your self-esteem shoots through the roof.
I had a really fun weekend with some friends, creating new memories and growing stronger bonds, but a friend of mine asked me a question that caught me off guard. The question was “why do you wake up at 5 AM everyday?” Now, the answer I gave was “because I like to operate on Eastern Standard Time.” My friend was perplexed since we live on the West Coast. I don’t blame him for not grasping my schedule, but I hold myself to an incredibly high standard, and nothing brings me more joy than the accountability that comes with setting goals and working hard before the sun comes up. I enjoy the peaceful moments of the empty Los Angeles streets before sunrise. And I wake up early because when you love your life and what you do, you want to get the most out of each day.
Holding yourself accountable can be difficult, especially in a world where so many people don’t do it. But letting others interfere with your goals and dreams doesn’t benefit you and your personal growth. That’s why, for my next post, I’ll be writing about the second thing of my big three: time. So for now, I’m going to stop. And, of course, as always, if you have any pressing questions or if you want to discuss something further, feel free to subscribe below or reach out to me on the “contact” page. I’m here for you!