Do you take personal responsibility for your actions?
“Do you sometimes wonder what that actually means — and whether or not you’re doing enough?
Taking personal responsibility has to do with your actions, words, and choices and how they affect you and others.
Accepting responsibility is essential to anyone who acknowledges and seeks to honor the connectedness between all living beings.
For instance, to admit that your actions have consequences, not only for you but also for others, is to own your role in the co-creation of the environment you share with others.
Acceptance of that role requires something of you. And your response shapes your character and either facilitates or prevents your personal development.
But what does the right response look like?
What Is Personal Responsibility?
You are personally responsible when you hold yourself accountable for your behaviors, decisions, and thoughts and the consequences of those.
To take responsibility for yourself means not only acknowledging your mistakes but also taking action to minimize or make reparation for the consequences of those mistakes.
There’s an immediate cost to taking that action, but if you see it as an investment in a better long-term outcome (and your personal growth), the cost is not a burden but a gift.
You may not be able to completely erase the effects of your mistake, but taking action to atone for it sends the right message.
And not only does it communicate your overall intentions to others; it also helps you realize the person you want to be and to take another step in that direction.”
Because I had a conversation with a trusted friend recently, and asked her what topics she would like to read about, this topic came to mind.
Furthermore, she stated that with all the people she communicates with at work and in her personal life, she noticed that taking responsibility was needed more often.
Blame seemed easier to many people, instead of owning what was going on and taking personal responsibility for their part in a conversation or situation.
As a result of taking your responsibility, she felt that relationships would be better and people would get along more often as well. I agree with her.
What do you think?
Taking on individual responsibility for your life and how you impact other people, requires you to become more self-aware.
Here are some positive steps to do that:
- Be aware of how your actions and decisions affect others.
- No more blaming or making excuses.
- Apologize and own up to your part.
- Make amends in other ways.
- Do what you know is right.
- Treat others the way you want to be treated.
- Find forgiveness for yourself and others.
- Slow down, breathe, pray, meditate.
Another thought I had, was to make sure your stress level is lower.
However, as I found during a stressful day of flying this past week and delayed flights, I became so physically and emotionally exhausted, I felt like I hit a wall. I wasn’t thinking straight and I found little things were irritating me.
After that I knew I really needed to take care of myself and get as much sleep as I could that night.
Hence, after a good nights sleep I woke up refreshed and feeling much better.
I realized I was not as capable of taking personal responsibility for my actions, when I was exhausted.
So please keep that in mind as well.
Here’s to each of us becoming aware of taking personal responsibility!
Connie
PS. Here is the website I found the important information above in quotations:
https://liveboldandbloom.com/06/self-improvement/taking-personal-responsibility
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