Posted on December 4, 2013 by Stephan Wiedner

In my 10 years of experience as an entrepreneurship coaching, I have discovered that most entrepreneurs think that they need to boost their will power to accomplish their goals. However, external accountability is a simple and proven psychological lever that is under appreciated and under utilized.

Will power is like a muscle. It can be strengthened but when used too much, it gets weak. Have you ever noticed that people tend to make poor decisions late in the day? Healthy eating, drinking, and exercising habits get thrown out the window around happy hour, after a long day of stress and decision making.

In this article, I will show you how to conserve your will power and instead use accountability to achieve your personal and business goals.

Sound Principles Applied by the Father of Positive Psychology

Martin Seligman is frequently referred to as the father of positive psychology. As one of the world’s most eminent psychologists, his research and theories have transformed the field. And yet, despite his accomplishments, Seligman still seeks the approval of his colleagues. In fact, he does so on a daily basis.

Every night, Seligman reports to four of his peers as to whether or not he walked 10,000 steps that day. If he did, he can go to sleep peacefully. If he didn’t, he has to make up the remaining steps on his pedometer before midnight.

Why would a man who was once president of the American Psychological Association subject himself to this?

It’s called accountability. It works.

And if you’re an entrepreneur, accountability is a powerful way to unleash your productivity.

Which Type of Entrepreneur are You?

In my decade-plus as an entrepreneurship coach, I’ve realized that there are three types of people:

1. The first is the super-organized, systematic go-getter.
2. The second is the lazy bum who has no motivation.
3. The third is someone in between — which is most people.

If you’re Type 1 or Type 2, you’re either too far ahead or too far behind to benefit from accountability.

But if you’re Type 3, accountability can be a game changer.

Over the years, I’ve discovered that when I’m accountable to someone, it’s much easier to stay on track. The same is true for my clients. Accountability forces you to cut out time-wasters and focus on what’s essential. And when that happens, your productivity goes through the roof.

Why Accountability Works For Goal Setting

Here’s what makes Martin Seligman’s 10,000-step program an effective one:

1. It’s a simple daily task.
2. Evaluation is objective (Did your pedometer reach 10,000 today: yes or no?).
3. Seligman is part of a group of colleagues who share the same goal.
4. The whole group has to report back every day in a visible way.

How is a psychologist with a pedometer relevant to you as an entrepreneur? Well, think about some of the critically important tasks that would make a huge difference in your business if you did them every day. For example, let’s say your everyday goals are to:

• Write at least one blog post.
• Reach out to at least one potential partner.
• Block off 30 minutes for client attraction activities.
• Make five cold calls.
• Have an accountability call with your team.

Now, anyone who runs their own business knows how easy it is to get distracted with “busy” work. You can probably relate to wasting an hour or two on Twitter, Facebook, or ESPN.

But with a system of accountability in place, getting sidetracked is not an option. You’ll do what you have to do without compromise — which frees up your energy, attention and will power to handle whatever emergencies arise, or better yet, go surfing, go on a hot date, or call a friend you haven’t spoken to in a year.

Why Hiring an Accountability Coach Works

A lot of life coaches and business coaches believe that once the client has tapped into their life’s passion, everything else will fall into place.

I don’t buy it, especially for entrepreneurs. Running a business is an emotional roller coaster. There are ups and downs and maintaining that passion can be tough. Sticking to the goals you’ve set can be even tougher because there is so much uncertainty, especially when the business is new.

Leveraging the expertise and knowledge of a certified and trained accountability coach can offload the work of managing your goals from your already extensive list of responsibilities so you can focus on accomplishing your goals.

Accountability coaches have systems to write down your goals, track your progress, follow up with things that slip, and generally let you know that they are paying attention to your growth.

For example, one of my recent clients accelerated his productivity — going from $5,000 in profit one month to $9,000 the next month. I asked him why and he told me this: “It’s easier to get stuff done now that I can see how my daily accomplishments fuel my long-term vision. Plus, I know that if I don’t achieve what I said I would, you’ll take me to task.”

Try a Simple Accountability Experiment to Start

Here’s an experiment. Choose one of your big goals and identify one simple thing you should be doing every day to achieve that goal. Call up someone you trust who could benefit by accomplishing the same or a similar daily goal. Agree to report back to each other every day at the same time for a week.

See what happens. You’ve got nothing to lose. And if you find yourself walking around with a pedometer at midnight, just know that you’re in good company.

Photo credit: Flickr