Accountability
Accountability – Thoughts from the Tour de France
I often tell my mentees that they need an Accountability partner – somebody who can hold them to the goals they are setting for themselves. If I’m honest I probably didn’t fully grasp, personally, the extent to which this was so incredibly important. Sometimes holding yourself accountable just isn’t enough.
They say that you should surround yourself with the right people to help you get ahead in life. If you surround yourself with people who are not meeting their goals and have a negative outlook in life, the chances are you will follow suit. However, if you surround yourself with positive, goal-oriented people you will ultimately be encouraged and inspired. “Accountability separates the wishers in life from the action-takers that care enough about their future to account for their daily actions.” – John Di Lemme
Where has today’s blog topic come from?
Well yesterday I was fortunate enough to live only 5km from the route of the 15e Etape of this year’s Tour de France from Ceret to Andorra, passing via Prades here in the Pyrenees Orientales. I was filled with anxiety for days, even weeks before, thinking about going to watch by myself. If the road were closed where would I park the car, would I be able to find a spot, how far in advance did I have to get there, what if there were too many people and I didn’t want to be in a crowd, would I feel stupid on my own? I have an innate sense of accountability and am my own harshest critic at the best of times, so I knew I was going to go despite the anxiety, and I have no regrets.
The rider up front here is Sepp Kuss - the winner of this stage of the Tour de France.
However, what really got me thinking about it was the race itself. These cyclists rode 191km yesterday alone, a route I wouldn’t even drive, scaling one of the highest peaks in the Pyrenees more than 150 km into the race. The amount of stamina required to do that is mind blowing in my opinion. Not only that, but they do it day after day after day during the Tour pushing their bodies to the extreme. The dedication that takes is extraordinary, the amount of training and preparation that goes into it is nothing short of exceptional. What struck me, furthermore, was the teamwork and sense of accountability as a team. The caravan goes past first with all the sponsors, then the cyclists themselves – some sprinting up front, some riding safely along with team members. This is followed by the support vehicles, medics, resource suppliers, you name it. Every cyclist’s wish to ride longer, faster, stronger pushes the next cyclist to succeed. The crowd around you, the team behind you. In order to qualify for points you have to finish each stage within 30 minutes of the fastest athlete – now that’s a clear goal and plenty of people around you to ensure you meet your target. Is training alone therefore enough? I don’t think so.
The next thing that got me thinking was my new watch. I was given a Smart Watch as a birthday gift this year – far from being an athlete myself, this may look on the surface to be a strange gift for somebody like me. However, this watch has suddenly started to hold me accountable for my daily routine. Annoying at times, granted, but highly effective in its ability to make me feel guilty for not reaching particular targets or even standing up when it tells me to! It tells me how many calories I’m burning and need to burn. It tells me how much activity and how many steps I should be doing daily and shames me for not doing them! It tracks my sleep, my meditation time, my heart rates. Simply by tracking it and holding me ‘accountable’ to a certain extent I am far more dedicated to reaching my goals.
So, this is where the Accountability Partner comes in. What is an Accountability Partner? Somebody who is there to make you feel guilty if you don’t do what you said you would! Ok, so perhaps there’s a bit more to it than that! But it is actually the crux of it! If you had a teacher you very much respected, set you homework activities for a certain deadline – you are far more likely to do your homework than if you were not set any.
Your accountability partner is there to cheer you on, to tell you when you are suffering from imposter syndrome and so to get over it and to keep you going when you think you can’t go any further. Essentially, going it alone just won’t cut it. You need other people – successful people don’t go it alone. They surround themselves with the right kind of people.
I’m sure there’s a lesson in here for some of us. If you would like to find out more about the kind of mentoring packages we offer and how we can be your accountability partners, please do not hesitate to get in touch.
