Ho is You Checking Yourself?
Radical Accountability is the Missing Key
I am a sucker for cliché quotes that subtly pinch my soul to remind me of a universal life truth. First, it was you’re not for everyone, and now it’s everything is working for me. This revelation prompted me to consider the importance of accountability. Radical accountability.
Amongst my multivitamins, I swallowed a capsule of pride. The side effects? Greater clarity and a sharper bullshit detector. If cheating or lying is the only time accountability takes centre stage, there’s a problem. True accountability requires us to be hyper-aware of how we contribute to our closest relationships. Checking yourself before you get checked is a gift.
The Struggle to Give an Account
According to many definitions, accountability is the willingness to accept responsibility for one’s actions based on an external event. Notice the strong emphasis on the other rather than the inner. This mindset shapes our socialisation: we are trained to consider our actions for the benefit of others while minimising accountability for our own personal growth.
But are you evaluating your actions regularly in support of a better you? Before accountability becomes common sense, it must first become common practice. Radical accountability is a pathway to greater clarity, strengthening our self-image in the process. And it doesn’t have to be scary.
Accountability cannot thrive in toxic environments. The vulnerability associated with transparency requires a niche crowd of open-minded individuals. You cannot expect accountability to be monumental in spaces where people have grown comfortable without it. Do not become a victim of your environment. This is your missing key to personal growth. Don’t hand it to the wrong person, or people.
I have found peace in checking myself. It keeps me on my toes and consistently offers profound revelations about how I can be better. I find contentment in my accountability—a reckoning that I will never be perfect, but I can always strive to be considerate. To myself and to others.
I hope you are open-minded to change as much as you are open-minded to apple cheddar pie. What? Me too guys.
Temwani xx