We are responsible for our actions – all of them. We are responsible for our thoughts and behaviour, whether deliberate or unintentional. A responsible person makes mistakes, but when they do, they take responsibility and make it right.
You are where you are because of who you are. Everything that exists in your life exists because of you, because of your behaviour, words and actions.
How do I become a responsible person?
- Be accountable. If your children are feisty, your partner unreasonable, your coworker unbearable, you are always responsible for how you respond. Your behaviour is under your control.
- Stop blaming. When you stop pointing the finger, you have control over yourself. Just because the other person is acting a fool, don’t be one yourself.
- Acknowledge what happened. When you acknowledge, “Yes, I forgot to call when I said I would,” you eliminate the need to make up silly excuses. “I messed up” is the responsible three-word sentence, and when followed with “How can I make it up to you?” it makes people willing to forgive. Your integrity earns respect.
- Accentuate the positive. Move through your day with positive attitude. Have you ever noticed that people who don’t take responsibility for their own behaviour are negative and cynical? Anything that goes wrong is always that other person’s fault. They’re perpetual victims. When you take responsibility for having the life you want, you switch your focus from what went wrong to what went right. A small shift in focus turns a loser into a winner.
- See yourself clearly. Taking responsibility means acknowledging both your weaknesses and strengths. It means acknowledging all that is wonderful about you. You are kind to yourself. A responsible person does not dismiss her own achievements. She knows her good and positive qualities. She has a complete picture of who she is. A responsible person continues to grow emotionally.
- Say “thank you.” Accept praise graciously. When someone acknowledges you, say, “thank you.” When someone is kind or gives you a gift, the responsible response is a sincere “thank you.”
- Practice healthy self-focus. Thinking too much about our own problems, worrying endlessly about the future, regretting the past, and feeling sorry for ourselves can lead to indulgent self-pity. It’s exhausting. However, taking time to really know what makes you tick, in a gentle, reflective way is the beginning of self-love and personal responsibility.
Source: How to Take Responsibility for Your Actions @ eHow Family
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- Taking Personal Responsibility @ Success Methods
Excerpt: The acceptance of personal responsibility is what separates the adult from the child. It’s the great leap forward into maturity. Responsibility is the hallmark of the fully integrated, fully functioning human being. Responsibility goes hand in hand with success, achievement, motivation, happiness and self-actualization. It’s the absolute minimum requirement for the accomplishment of everything you could ever really want in life. Accepting that you’re completely responsible for yourself and realizing that no one is coming to the rescue is the beginning of peak performance. There’s very little that you cannot do or have after you accept that “If it’s to be, it’s up to me!”
- Taking Responsibility for Your Actions @ Life Coach Expert
Excerpt: One of our biggest problems is that we don’t like to fail and, more importantly, we don’t like to be seen to fail. The problem with that train of thought, however, is that we then tend to set ourselves a goal but at the same time we create an excuse to keep as a ‘spare card’ we can use so that if we don’t succeed, we can blame something or somebody else. However, the more personal responsibility we take, the more in control we are and the more control we have, the more likely we will reach our goal as there will be no excuses to fall back on if we fail. Therefore, taking responsibility for our actions equals success. It also makes us feel good about ourselves and rids us of negative personality traits such as anger, fear, resentment, hostility and doubt.
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