I was a beginner once, though long ago before computers (yes, it’s true). I had no one to ask. I read. I subscribed to Writer’s Digest. I learned the basics through reading about them. I was a little embarrassed to ask questions (also a mistake). I learned from doing and from trying. Okay, eventually I had Internet writing colleagues, so I was able to ask. But still, I didn’t. I read. I let them discuss and I absorbed their discussions like a sponge.

I do answer questions. I love them. But I won’t give any writer a “How do I get started?” response any longer than “Read this blog, then do a Google search for specific topics.” No one has enough time to answer that question!

Hmm, since this is going so well, maybe I need an accountability partner to help me stick to working out every day…

I think it’s important to also point out that it doesn’t all come at once. Being independent and accountable can take time – it’s not entirely black and white. In some regards you have to grow into it and practice being responsible over and over again before it becomes a habit.

And since we’re throwing out all of our personal weight loss stories, I’ll include mine. I gained almost 60 with my first and lost all but 5. With my second I gained 70 but my life was much, much fuller then with teaching, writing, a masters and a toddler and about half of that weight stayed on. For years. And for the most part I just ignored it because I wasn’t ready to tackle it just yet.

Just in January did I have enough control of all those other parts of my life to get that back under control, too. I’ve modified parts of my diet and lost 12-13 pounds since January. More than a few left to go, but it feels good to have those pants getting looser instead of tighter again.

@Anne, I never progressed past rebellious teen in terms of maturity, so I think an accountability partner would hate me, but that could be a GREAT idea for others!

@Jenn, I wouldn’t say UNwillingly :)

@Rebecca, did you know that DPF was my inspiration for this post? Please tell me you’ve felt the frustration there too!

I will say that these two things are at odds, discipline-wise. Discipline in my work means having my butt in a chair, immovable, without excuses. And not gaining weight requires the opposite- getting OUT of this chair. It’s a push pull and so far I’ve succeeded in that balance.

One way I help my self be accountable is with an accountability partner… wrote about it actually – http://bit.ly/9la8OI

Of course that only works when I work it… thanks for the reminder.

As for business, it really is the same. You have to take responsibility. You will very likely slip up at times. And when you make a bad decision you have to evaluate the problem and alternatives and then fix it.

You know, whether on the blog or privately, you have a way of kicking my ass into shape in various non-business areas even when you don’t mean to. You’ve done it on the man front, and here you’ve done it again on the health one. You’re like my unwilling life coach! ;)