I have an AP; and so should you =)

An AP!!!!
What is an AP? Who should have one? How should you pick yours?

An accountability partner is coined an AP; they are someone you share a lot in common with but more importantly, a person that are at or beyond your level. Huh, in what way? Well, let us use the area of wellness for this post.

If you have some wellness goals and need help staying on track, this is where your cautiously selected AP comes into play. They should currently be accomplishing their goals with little distractions and or external assistance. Your AP will be of no assistance to you if they cannot keep themselves on track. An AP's track record should at least be consistent in other areas even if they are not currently working on any goals in the same area that you're working on. Their main responsibilities will include knowing what your current goal is and holding you accountable. Pun intended as they call you out for slipping on "your goals". It is super fun and rewarding when both of you are working on similar goals; i.e paying off credit card debt, building an emergency account, eating healthier, exercising consistently etc. If not, you can still set up a check-in schedule to your progress. Accountability partner's not only hold each other accountable for accomplishing their designated goals, but they also encourage you, lend an ear when frustration sets in, provide a reality check if necessary and also be your biggest cheerleader in all ways possible.

I have an AP and would not trade her for the world. She gets a daily snapshot of my workouts and make sure am fulfilling my goals. If not, she calls me out on it and I have to provide a reason. Example: at one point, I was drinking at least 70 oz of water by the time my early morning workout was over and she nicely noted my consumption had fallen significantly; so an explanation was warranted ASAP. Naturally, an AP can easily rub off on their AP in a positive way by simply sharing progress updates. It has happened quite often with us and we're actually accountability partners in other areas as well. It's priceless to have someone on such a journey.

Hence, make sure your AP can be trusted with their lives and freely agrees to be yours. After that, get in the groove of accomplishing your goals together. Finally, it is not a competition amongst you all; rather it is a journey that may lead you all on varying paths.

Good luck~