Taking Responsibility
Most people's initial reaction when something goes wrong is to blame their poor luck, assign responsibility to others, or just complain about their unique circumstances. They attribute their weight gain and poor health to fast food, soda, restaurant, lack of time, heredity, and/or parental influences.
They blame the vehicles in front of them for not moving more quickly or for stopping too long at stop lights if they are late for work. They blame the state of the economy or their supervisor for keeping them in a low-paying jobs that they detest.
They accuse the other person of being stupid for not seeing the great person in front of them when they are rejected for a date or dumped. Since it's far simpler to place the blame and burden of obligation elsewhere, there's no need to feel guilty when nothing is done.
On the other hand, accepting responsibility for one's actions may be far more unpleasant. According to Mark Manson's fantastic piece. The first realization is that "Nobody gives a sh**." Moreover, the fact that we all have significant baggage.
Everyone has been mistreated. There are bad bosses for everyone. Everyone has poor genetics. It asks us to stop looking outside of ourselves and cease abdicating our responsibility for growth, which is difficult. There is only one place to look after we stop blaming external factors for our tragedies or predicaments: the mirror.
Why is the mirror the ideal location to gaze if you want to live levels up life? Let me explain.
Your current situation in life is a result of a mix of your choices, your actions, and uncontrollable external occurrences. It's time to approach everything as if it were your job to correct, even if everything may not be your fault (sh** happens). Life is a game that some people get to play on easy while others are forced to play on legendary hard.
Though unfair, life is what it is.
Here's why having personal responsibility is so great. Once you start taking ownership of your circumstances, you'll discover that there is nothing to wait for and no one to ask for before you can make changes. You may just begin immediately like this moment.
Doors then begin to open.
You get to be the reason you go ahead because YOU are the reason YOU are where YOU ARE. I like Adam Carolla because he can be very inappropriate at times while still being a strong advocate for taking charge of one's life. Even if you don't share his political views, you should still pay attention to him on this matter. I nodded along with this specific video about taking responsibility the whole time.
We can alter.
Being a human is the best thing in the world, yet people waste it. There is a huge possibility for progress if you realize that everything has to be fixed or improved (even if it wasn't your fault). We start to understand that chance has nothing to do with it until we can stop complaining about other people's luck and our terrible luck! Why I'm not a Lucky Bastard by my buddy Gary Arndt is a fantastic piece that explains it very well.
The difference between successful individuals and others who are willing to mope about and lament their misfortune is this:
They acknowledge that they are overweight and out of shape and decide how to start changing their daily routines to start changing their situation.
They own their role in a failed relationship or less-than-stellar interactions when meeting new people, and they make plans to develop their social skills, put more effort into making a good impression, and spend time considering the kind of person they want to be with.
They take ownership of the fact that they are underpaid in a job they despise, and they decide to acquire new skills or enroll in online courses to increase their value. They don't mind having the awkward but important "I deserve a raise and here's why" conversation with their supervisor.
Now, just because I spend my time assisting people in leading balanced lives does not imply that I do not encounter these issues myself. I've made it a personal goal to correct a few aspects about myself that I thought needed addressing, both physically and mentally.
I'm now working to level up in a method that has already been beneficial.
My absence
I discovered that if I was late for anything, I had a problem becoming angry. I used to yell furiously at the drivers of the vehicles in front of me for moving too slowly. I would get enraged when the light did not turn green more quickly. I would get irate at the elevator for taking so long.
I've got to accept this as a learning opportunity instead, realizing that I'm the one who's late, not other people. I now focus on being on time or early and solely hold myself responsible for being late.
I encourage you to evaluate your life starting now and take ownership of making changes. Spend some time considering why you're dissatisfied and what may make things better. Whether it be in your life, career, relationships, or looks. Find the aspects of your life that you are dissatisfied with, and then start making even the smallest improvements to them.
Take responsibility today.
