How to Make Yourself Do Stuff With Accountability and Support
Introducing a private space for us to converse and connect
Have you ever failed at a goal?
One of the biggest things I hear from clients is that they tried such and such a diet or exercise plan, and it worked great!
Until it didn’t.
“I was really doing it! I went to the gym all the time. I was feeling fantastic, and I lost a few pounds. But then I just stopped going.”
“You should have seen me. I had my food dialed in, everything was easy. Then I went to that party, and after that, it all went back to the way I was before. I slobbed out.”
If this has happened to you, you aren’t alone. People try to make positive changes in their lives every day and then backslide. It makes you wonder, is there even any point? Maybe we should just eat Doritos, lie here, and watch TIK TAK.
You Can Do The Thing
It isn’t hopeless. You can prevail.
Whatever goal you have, you can make some progress toward it and see improvement. Humans do it all the time. If you’re a human, so can you!
I’m going to throw some random goals out there that I’ve seen people pull off:
Work their way from only walking 500 feet a day, to running a 5K.
Start going to the gym regularly and put on 10 lbs of muscle.
Cut out wheat and gluten and fix their busted guts.
Lose weight to get rid of their CPAP machine and get off antidepressants.
Change their lifestyle, reduce stress, and put brain cancer in remission.
These are regular people who pulled off something fantastic. The actual goal reached is fine, but it’s nothing compared to the self-esteem you get when you realize you’re capable of much more than you knew.
Do you have a dream for yourself? Is there something you’d like to aim for if you just knew how? Maybe all you need is some support and accountability to give yourself that push.
Sometimes, you can find that accountability by teaming up with a friend. If you can get a reliable accountability buddy to do the thing with you, you will have a much easier time.
If you go to a gym, you can spend the extra bucks and get a personal trainer. Or you can get a coach online.
There might be other missing ingredients besides accountability. Getting help from a friend or coach can assist you in finding your path forward.
I now offer coaching via chat. You can find out more below.
Other resources to help you make changes:
Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones by James Clear
Better Than Before: What I Learned About Making and Breaking Habits — to Sleep More, Quit Sugar, Procrastinate Less, and Generally Build a Happier Life by Gretchen Rubin
The Miracle Morning: The Not-So-Obvious Secret Guaranteed to Transform Your Life (Before 8AM) by Hal Elrod
My Reason Why:
I became a Certified Health Coach because I was a victim of ultra-processed foods and a slave to society’s food programming all my life. It made me an overweight binge-eater with multiple problems. I got healthy with the help of a coach, so I know how powerful personal support can be.
Now, I help clients to set and reach their own fitness goals. Unfortunately, not everyone can afford coaching.
That’s why I set up this newsletter: to spread free information and support. I will keep sending free emails and answer any questions I get in the comments. You can also reply to the newsletter in your inbox, and I will do my best to help you!
You can get more in-depth suggestions in my chat group if you want extra help with your goals and accountability.
Join my coaching community chat!
I now have a chat for paid subscribers to support you in goal setting and accountability. We can get down to your specific issues and answer questions.
It’s an opportunity to make positive changes in your life. Let me help you come up with a plan! Then, we can set up milestones and check-ins to keep you on track.
This conversation space is exclusively for paid subscribers—like a group chat or live hangout. I’ll post questions and updates that come my way, and you can jump into the discussion.
How to get started
Get the Substack app by clicking this link or the button below. New chat threads won’t be sent via email, so turn on push notifications so you don’t miss a conversation as it happens. You can also access chat on the web.
Open the app and tap the Chat icon. It looks like two bubbles in the bottom bar, and you’ll see a row for my chat inside.
That’s it! Jump into my thread to say hi, and if you have any issues, check out Substack’s FAQ.
Great idea Tim,
would be nice to have a chat with you about it!
What a fabulous idea, Tim! It's a way people can access some accountability without paying the expensive per session fees! As a health coach myself (IIN and ISSA), I know that is very important!