Take personal responsibility by doing 8 things for personal growth.

There’s nothing more displeasing than watching someone dance around personal responsibility in favor of manufacturing alibies when it comes to getting things accomplished.

The irony of excuses becomes incredibly evident when I travel.

I have been blessed to stay at some of the most beautiful resorts in the world.  They have amazing facilities and incredible accommodations, and they understand certain people are very particular about their health.

People often justify a week of leisure time under the auspices of “hard work” and needing to “reward themselves”.

Ironically, these are the same people that lament about having inadequate time for working out or focusing on personal care.

Lounging by the pool with a fresh drink, they watch you walk by with six pack abs and wonder how it’s possible to look good, feel good and have the resources to stay at a place like this.

Well, even on vacation my day starts at 3:30am.  For an entire week, I have the entire gym to myself.  I walk 5 to10 miles a day, read, study for hours, and adhere to my strict eating regiment. 

I understand my level of discipline isn’t for everyone, but lacking time isn’t the explanation for why people don’t look and feel like they desire.

Excuses and lack of discipline are normally the real reason dreams remain dormant.

“The key is taking responsibility and initiative, deciding what your life is about and prioritizing your life around the most important things”.  – Stephen Covey

Here are 8 steps we can take to start taking full responsibility for our life:  

Fear factor

To get to where we want to be, we need to concur fear.   Fear of failure is something many people struggle with.  Being bold takes guts and a desire to obliterate excuses.  It’s amazing how the human mind can become our worst enemy.  The challenges will be big enough, don’t let our imagination lend credibility to imagined obstacles.

Expectations

Unrealistic expectations are at the heart of plenty of missed opportunities.  Without a realistic assessment of what big challenges require, we set off destined to fail, because we aren’t prepared for the arduous journey.  In addition, uncertainty plays a major part in keeping people stagnant.  Learning to become flexible in our approach is critical for navigating obstacles and staying focused on our objectives.    

Goals

Many people set off with nebulous expectations about what they desire.  I want to be a millionaire.  Great, now what?  As a result, they chase opportunities that promise to decisive plans driven by agility ,focus and long term perspective.  

“Take responsibility — it’s where your powers live”.  – Will Craig

Setbacks

Setbacks are inevitable as we pursue our ambitions.  Having a healthy relationship with mistakes helps us maintain a positive perspective.  We aren’t striving for perfection; we are striving to do great work.  Setbacks are an excellent learning opportunity and should never prevent us from pushing forward.  Learning to maneuver around obstacles is a skill that needs to be cultivated.   

Comparisons

Making comparisons is a common problem, especially on social media.  Here’s a bulletin that might help us avoid the need to learn the hard way.  There’s always someone better looking, wealthier and more fit.  Run your race and stay focused on becoming the best version of yourself you can become.  

Guarded ego

Many people make excuses to guard their fragile ego.  They fear getting hurt or falling on their face.  In addition, many people are trying to avoid embarrassment.  Regardless, letting our egos inspire a desire for safety ensures big goals never get off the ground.  We must be smart, courageous and confident.

Motivation

We must be more determined than our excuses.  Learning to internalize motivation is the key to ensuring motivation is always readily available.  People that argue it isn’t possible haven’t spent a week with me.  I can’t believe how many self-help gurus argue it’s impossible to stay motivated.  Really?  That’s sad and it shows me they haven’t truly discovered the well of motivation that resides within us all.   Harvesting it is the challenge.  Once you do, you will leap from bed each day with a new mindset dedicated to excellence.    

Resources

I have met so many people that say they can’t get the funding to start their business.  Maybe stop focusing on how someone else can subsidize your dream and get imaginative about how you can fund it yourself. It may take more time, patience, and determination, but it’s possible.  That’s how I did it.  I borrowed money from my credit card.  That’s how much I believed in my dream.  I hear people complain about how they can’t get funding because of their race or gender.  They ostensibly are being judged unfairly.  No, that’s what investors do. They critically appraise every investment opportunity.  Maybe they can see someone isn't really committed or have the expertise required to pull it off.  Most new businesses last year were started by women, and business ownership for Latinos was up 87%, and up 60% for blacks.  There’s plenty of people that look like we do that aren’t making excuses, they are being bold, courageous, and embracing personal responsibility.       

“The secret ingredients to true happiness? Decisive optimism and personal responsibility”.  – Amy Leigh Mercree

Sum it up.

Any other suggestions for becoming more personally responsible?  Share your thoughts in the comments section and please like and share this article. I love learning from you as well.

About Steve:

Steve Wohlenhaus is CEO of Weatherology, the leading company in the world at disseminating audio weather information.   Steve began his career as a major market television weather anchor in Minneapolis, where he received several Emmy Awards for science programming.  Steve is an author and host of the podcast program Anatomy of Success.  Reach out and connect with me on LinkedIn.  Learn more about my work and grab the free Weatherology mobile app by clicking any picture in this article!