Accountability

Accountability is something that’s necessary in life. It’s different than blame, justice or punishments. It’s simply
based on Newton’s third law: For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. Of course, this was
originally meant to explain a pair of forces acting on two interacting objects, but as with all things, if it
works…it’s spiritual at its core.

Accountability becomes an asset when we disconnect from the victim mentality and the idea that life is
happening to us. When we accept responsibility for our own lives and begin to see that the reason things
haven’t gone the way we wanted was largely because of us not knowing the rules to the game. We were
conditioned to think we had no control over our lives when the truth is…we have quite a bit of control. If we
understand life and work with it, things go smoothly.

So lets take an example of trying to implement a change into your life. This could be looking for a new job, a
new place to live, getting on a workout schedule, changing eating habits, teaching your children about helping
around the house, etc. The first thing to understand that we have the ability to hold ourselves accountable…we
do it all the time. There are certain things we don’t forget or miss…things like doctor appointments, picking up
our children, groceries, etc. We don’t forget these things because they are high on our list of priorities. This is
key…making yourself a priority.

If you will keep an appointment with a complete stranger, why would you not show that same respect to
yourself? You deserve that level of respect and if you don’t give it to yourself, it’s impossible to have much self-
love. How can you be in a loving relationship with someone when you don’t respect them or what’s important
to them? You can’t. That goes for the relationship you have with yourself as well.

First make a plan ahead of time, write it down, put in on your calendar with a reminder, do whatever it takes to
take it seriously. Then have a talk with yourself. Understand why it’s important to you, your future and your
self-love to commit to this change and follow through with it. You can also put a time frame on this new
schedule…like I will do this for 2 weeks and then sit down to reassess if any changes need to be made. After you
have the plan in place, it’s time to stop having discussions in your head about it. It’s over, you’ve committed.
No more thinking, discussing, changes, redirecting or anything else for 2 weeks. Now you just do.

The ego loves to wait until the moment it’s time to do something to create its reasons for not doing it. It’s all
lies. If you’re looking for a reason to not do something, you will find that reason. So, don’t discuss it in your
head, it’s not up for discussion, it’s simply a commitment that will be followed through. And if it’s the most
foolish commitment you’ve ever made…than you’ll be a fool for 2 weeks. It’s okay, you’ll live. You’ll live and
you’ll also develop respect for yourself for following through on something. For holding yourself accountable.
There are natural consequences to everything in life. When we treat ourselves and others with respect, respect
is given back. When we make excuses for why we don’t have control over our own lives, we live in an out-of-
control life. When we live consciously and implement the changes we wish to see in our lives, our lives get
better. It’s not always easy, but it is very simple. So keep it simple and be the change you wish to see in your
world.

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