I’ve been thinking a lot lately about accountability.  I know for myself and the people I choose to surround myself with, there are so many things we want to do that it’s sometimes difficult to know what to do first, why we’re doing it, what we already know how to do vs. what we need help/training/coaching on, and how to stay on track and get it done.

As a Professional Career Coach, I am a big believer in ongoing training, education, development, and coaching. I read books, take classes, network with amazing people, participate in interesting forums, and I personally work with a coach, Ann Strong of Thriving Coaches. She helps me to stay on track, move forward with digestible steps, yet also stretches me gently beyond my comfort zone and shines light on the areas I can’t see because I’m the one “in it”.

Somehow, when I tell her I will do something (I take on ‘homework’ in between our coaching sessions), it gets done!  I have really accelerated the results in my business in this way.  The funny thing is that I know I’m ultimately accountable and responsible to myself but putting a ‘stake in the ground’, saying it out loud to someone else whom I respect (and invest in!) and assigning a date to it… gets it done.

I started wondering what other areas of my life need more accountability. For example, I know that I would like to be exercising more and eating differently/better.  But I’m not really doing it.  I make some progress but then backslide, stall out, and then get overwhelmed.  I wonder why this area seems so ‘easy’ for some people and difficult for others.

So, if apply my methods of success in my career coaching business to this area of my life, I know it’s time to get accountable to someone… so I did it.  I mean, I know what to do: how to exercise, my exercise options, why building lean muscle mass is important, why eating healthier matters, and so on. But I wasn’t doing it until I held myself accountable to myself through someone else.  I invested in myself to break the big goal into digestible steps, to get clear on why it’s ultimately important to me, to know what success will look like, to examine what may be holding me back and to clear it, to have another perspective, and to ultimately get it done and taken care of thereby fulfilling another goal and dream.

The dictionary defines the word accountable as this:

-adjective: subject to the obligation to report, explain, or justify something; responsible; answerable.

It sounds so serious yet it pretty much sums it up.  So, my questions for you are this… How do YOU stay accountable in your life? In your career? In your job search? etc. What do you need to put in place to create more accountability to yourself so your goals and dreams become reality?

If I can help you to get accountable, stay on track, stretch and grow towards your career and/or job search goals, please let me know.  You can check out your options here:

• Career Path / Success Services
• Job Search Strategy Services

And please comment!

Here’s a little video for you on the importance of CLARITY with respect to career happiness, success, and/or successful job search strategy.  As a Professional Career Coach, I can’t stress enough how magical it can be when someone is clear within him/herself as to what they really want and what they are trying to achieve. Amazing!

Please let me know how I can help you to achieve more clarity thereby creating super success! Enjoy.

As always, I welcome your comments!

• It is very powerful to set intentions within 8 hours AFTER the new moon (after the new moon occurs). Within 48 hours is still powerful.
• Write up to 10 intentions (any more than that and the energy gets kind of displaced).
• It is best to hand write them (vs type)
• Each month, the new moon is ruled by a different astrological sign which rules certain aspects of life. Writing intentions in these areas is very powerful but you can write your intentions in ANY area of your life.
• Write your intentions in the positive… In other words, state what you want (don’t say what you don’t want or may just get that!).

• Inventions, including: innovative ideas, brilliance, eccentricity, understanding how things work
• The Future, including: new trends and unconventional approaches, high technology, long-range goals, following your heart’s desire
• Humanitarianism, including: seeking outcomes that are good for everyone involved, identification with humankind, interest in others, operating from a larger worldview 
• Revelations, including: excitement, unexpected results, surprises, revitalizing experiences, freedom
• The Big Picture, including: objectivity, seeking knowledge, tools of divination (astrology, numerology, tarot, I Ching, etc.), humor, manifesting dreams
• Friendship, including: friends, groups, networking, open/friendly approaches, forthrightness, giving and receiving platonic love
• Detachment, including: cold aloofness, fear of involvement, erratic or shocking behavior, inflexible opinions
• In matters of health, Aquarius rules: ankles and calves, circulation, cramps and spasms, and varicose veins

Many of you have heard the saying, “If you don’t know where you’re going, how are you going to get there?” Really pause and think about this for a few minutes. What areas of your life do you feel crystal clear about? Which seem more murky? Do you know, at a detailed level, what you want in health, fitness, family, finances, home, friends, hobbies, sports, and career?

Since I help many of you with career success, here are some things to consider as you get clear:

• What do you want to spend the bulk of your day doing?
• What sorts of people do you want to interact with daily?
• What sort of work environment feels best for you?
• How do you want to feel each day?
• What skills and talents do you want/need to utilize to feel most successful?

Your vision for your career is important because you need to know what you’re striving for in order to create and efficient, laser focused path to get there. The scatter-gun or “I’ll take anything” approach to career (or anything) rarely works because you won’t know what to work for and you won’t know if you’re being successful in accomplishing your dreams.

Clarity is mainly for you but it also helps to let others know what it is you want, who you are, and what makes you unique. It’s the people we come into contact with that will help us achieve our dreams so you might as well tell them what they are in a simple, concise fashion.

If you want to get crystal clear on what’s important to you in your career and life, join me for my upcoming teleseminar, “Know What You Want / Know Where You’re Selling.”
This Thursday, February 11, 2010
12:00 – 1:00 pm Pacific (2:00 pm Central, 3:00 pm Eastern)

This is part of the Job Search Accelerator Program created to help you super charge your job search success and tap into the Hidden Job Market effectively and strategically. Membership details are here.

Regardless of your path – know what you want, know how your dream feels, and go for it!

As always, I welcome your comments.

-Kelly Harrington*

*About the author: Kelly Harrington is a Professional Career Coach and President & Founder of Career Max Group. She helps her clients to achieve maximum success in career and life through a variety of programs and services. She offers practical and holistic solutions to help you achieve the career of your dreams.