4 Personal Accountability Tips for Parents
It’s time to start making parenting goals and using personal accountability to make sure they happen.
Parenting is so busy and there is so much focus on taking care of others. Sometimes it can feel like your days are guided by what other people need and want.
By figuring out what’s important to you, someday dreams can become do-able goals. You can accomplish the things that really matter to you.
Examples of Parenting Goals
These are only a few examples of parenting goals that you might want to reach.
- Daily walks for exercise.
- Regular date nights with your spouse.
- Potty training.
- One on one time with the kids.
- Reading a book just for you.
- Finding a meal planning and prepping routine.
- Teaching the kids to sew.
- Printing and hanging photos.
- Doing activities with your kids.
I like to think of anything that will improve our family life or have an effect on the kids as a parenting goal. That means the list could be REALLY long. Look it over for inspiration and then share some ideas in the comments.
4 Places to Find Personal Accountability Support
One of the best ways I’ve found to stay accountable is to build a support system. The support looks different depending on what goal I’m trying to reach.
Join a challenge. There is something motivating about participating in a challenge. Not only does it lay everything out in easy to follow steps, you might also find a community of people working through the same thing. (AKA Extra support!)
Find a buddy. Finding friends once you become a parent can be really hard. Reaching out to someone with a specific purpose makes it easier. Think about a goal you would like to reach. Is there someone in your life who might be interested in working toward the same goal?
Set up a check in time. It can be daily or weekly, in person or through text. Each time you check in share what you’ve accomplished and what the next steps are. The added bonus is that creating an accountability buddy is great way to build solid friendships!
Write it out. At the beginning of a new month sit down and write out 1 -3 things you want to accomplish. Write out what action needs to happen in order to achieve these goals. What is the timeline for making this happen?
Set yourself a date. Then schedule in those actions… in pen. Be firm with these tasks. They are just as important as if you had promised to do them for someone else.
Check back in at the beginning of each week. What can you do this week to move you closer to the goal?
Celebrate. Keeping yourself accountable and staying intentional about the way you spend your time has another bonus. You know when you’ve accomplished something. Take some time to breathe it in.
Share your wins with other parents. Pat yourself on the back. Treat yourself to something special.
