How To Be A Good Accountability Partner?

Picture of By Darren Finkelstein
By Darren Finkelstein

The Accountability Guy®

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How To Be A Good Accountability Partner?

Being a Good Accountability Partner

First, let’s get you clear with who an accountability partner is. 

An accountability partner is the one with whom you build a relationship based on reciprocity. There’s commitment, mutual agreement, and you provide feedback to each other regularly.

You share your life with your accountability partner and your goals and missions. You share your highs and your lows while both work on yourself together.

This post will walk you through the importance of an accountability partner and what makes an effective accountability partner.

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The Power of Accountability And An Accountability Partner

When you are accountable to someone other than yourself, you create an obligation to complete your tasks timely.

Accountability makes you answerable and accountable for your actions and their outcomes.

You are committed socially, which dramatically increases the odds. The principle of reciprocity in accountability makes your accountability partnership powerful. You make sure that this partnership is leading you to your goal and adding to your benefits.

Having a good accountability partner boosts the chances of effective pathways to your goals. Taking full responsibility for one’s actions while you have the backup and strength from a fellow aspirant is easier. You get the push and determination you require for such a responsibility.

Now that you realize the power of accountability and having an accountability partner, let’s move on to the points that make a good accountability partner.

How To Be A Good Accountability Partner?

You already know who is an accountability partner. However, some points complete a good accountability partner. The vital qualities of a good accountability partnership involve commitment, communication, supportiveness, faithfulness, thoughtfulness, and understanding.

So, here’s an approach that leads to an effective accountability partnership, making a good accountability partner.

1. Identify Your Action Plan

Sorting out the action plan for you and your accountability partner before you set out on the partnership is key to beginning the relationship effectively. When you start on it, you get the courage to go with it.

Waiting with just a plan ready in your hands and not acting upon it will lower your willpower. You’ll end up being a target to procrastination.

Encouraging each other to take the first step is the beginning of a good accountability partnership.

2. Be Realistic

When it comes to being the ideal accountability partner, you’ve got to be realistic with your plans as well as theirs. They deserve to know what’s best for them. You need to be honest and stay faithful to each other.

Excuses are to be taken practically, and they should not be the pebbles on your way to success.

Help your partner to be realistic with their goals. Fix one goal at a time to take your journey ahead broken into several steps. This way, you both are moving on together with achievable goals. You can back each other up if either of you falls weak.

3. Challenge Each Other

Challenges always trigger you. The same is the case in an accountability relationship. When you challenge each other for milestones, your competitive spirit and your willpower triggers and you to go for it.

At the end of that milestone should be your 100% effort which your partner acknowledges.

If you fail the challenge, as a faithful partner, your partner will honestly tell you where they found you may have gone wrong or off-track. You’d do the same for them.

4. Set An Example

Consider an example here: deadlines.

If you and your partner are involved in an ongoing challenge, it is vital to fulfill the challenge in the given timeline. To begin with it, you should be the one responsible for finishing it on time to set an example.

There is always a belief in counting your own faults before counting others. And the art of accountability teaches you how to be accountable to one’s own actions.

When you learn you set an example by owning your actions, you can expect your partner to do the same.

5. Be Trustworthy

As you read above, there is commitment and faithfulness along with other qualities in an ideal accountability relationship. However, one of the peak qualities most essential that comes along with faithfulness is trust.

A good accountability partner is a trustworthy person. Without trust, your partner would never even rely on you as their accountability partner. As you commit to this partnership, it is crucial that you are entirely faithful to each other and do not let each other down.

Be genuinely interested in helping each other with no self-benefits from their success.

Summing Up

As you read above, there is commitment and faithfulness along with other qualities in an ideal accountability relationship. However, one of the peak qualities most essential that comes along with faithfulness is trust.

A good accountability partner is a trustworthy person. Without trust, your partner would never even rely on you as their accountability partner. As you commit to this partnership, it is crucial that you are entirely faithful to each other and do not let each other down.

Be genuinely interested in helping each other with no self-benefits from their success.