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“Wherever you are, be there totally. If you find your here and now intolerable and it makes you unhappy, you have three options: remove yourself from the situation, change it, or accept it totally. If you want to take responsibility for your life, you must choose one of those three options, and you must choose now. Then accept the consequences.” – Eckart Tolle
There are times in life, in business, or your career where you feel life is happening to you versus for you. How do you know if you are stuck in one of those times? When you are stuck, you get caught up in assigning blame to others, complain about what’s not going right, and you make excuses for not getting the results that you want. You are viewing the world from a place of lack or scarcity. You have negative self-talk and you catch yourself falling into a negative spiral of emotion. You stop taking actions because you figure there is no point. It can be a tough place to be.
Everything can change when you decide to make a change. The smallest change in making intentional choices in different aspects of your life can make the biggest shifts. If you decide to be more conscious of your spending or food choices or preparation, chances are you will save money and eat out less. If you start to build and nurture relationships, you will be long lasting connections. If you decide to walk among the people you lead and take interest in them, they will take interest in you. It all starts with intention.
When you start to shift your thinking from the belief that other people are responsible for making the change or creating what you want (they owe you – NO RESPONSIBILITY) to realizing you are the one who has the control. Taking responsibility means you are taking control. That’s when the real power comes into play. You have more power than you realize and give yourself credit for. Start giving yourself permission to create a life or business you really want and believe you deserve it!
NO RESPONSIBILITY = NO POWER
REAL RESPONSIBILITY = REAL POWER
If you want to create more success in your life, you need to take 100% responsibility for all you experience. It starts with no complaining, no blaming, or finding excuses for why you are not getting the results you want. It’s easy to celebrate the great things and not so easy to learn from things that did not go as planned – because sometimes it stings. The question you need to ask yourself is, “What could I have done differently to get the results I wanted?” Pay attention to what you are thinking and how you feel. Focus on the actions to get results. It is not someone else’s job to deliver the results you want. You are responsible for everything from your achievements, education, personal relationships, your finances, and your thoughts and feelings. You create your results. You are not responsible for the way others react or respond. You are responsible for you!
Some people would rather avoid responsibility as it adds extra pressure and expectation – and of course, effort. They do not want to put in the hard work required to get the results. When you are focused on the penalties – less TV time, less sports time, less social time, spend some money, and the list goes on, you will not take action. Although sacrifice is temporary, it feels like something is taken away versus helping you get closer to the goal. Time for a reframe. Otherwise, maybe you do not want it as badly as you say you do. When this happens, it is a great time to investigate a bit deeper. You could be trapped in the fear of success. You are probably thinking – “Don’t I want success?” People tend to avoid taking the actions needed or they sabotage themselves because success comes with an increase in responsibility and expectation. They worry about how they will maintain or exceed the results they have achieved. There is a T-shirt saying that says, “Easy doesn’t make you proud.” You are most proud of the moments where you push through limits or adversity.
Start taking responsibility by doing 3 things:
Develop a Growth Mindset – Mistakes and failures are life’s greatest learning opportunities. Learn from them. What are the possibilities? Focus on solutions and you will find them. Focus on problems and you will see obstacles. Learn through trial and error, educate yourself, take a course, develop a new skill, and take on new roles.
Share Your Voice – Quit holding back! Share your observations and opinions. Don’t complain. Come up with and offer suggestions or solutions to improve a situation. People are not mind-readers. When people complain, they often have a view of what they would like to see instead. Encourage them to share their thoughts without judgment. You – included.
Set a Standard for Yourself – Raise the bar by continually challenging yourself to become better. Produce more. Be more efficient. Create more. Listen to podcasts and audiobooks. Read books. Expect more to achieve more.
BONUS TIP: Above all, start taking action. If nothing changes, nothing changes.
“Action springs not from thought, but from a readiness for responsibility.”
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Don’t sell yourself short. The real power comes when you take 100% responsibility for your results. What can you start doing to take more responsibility in your life? Remember you have three choices: remove yourself from the situation, change it, or accept it totally. What will you choose?
We would love to have you subscribe to the Success Secrets newsletter on my website at www.debrakasowski.com where you’re going to get my just release FREE e-book about the 21 Habits High Achievers Kick to Achieve Success. I would love to hear about this podcast has impacted your life. E-mail me at Debra@DebraKasowski.com. Thank you for listening to The Millionaire Woman Show where we talk about leadership, business, and human potential to help you live rich from the inside out. Subscribe to The Millionaire Woman Show. Share it with Your Friends. Give us a 5-star rating!
DEBRA KASOWSKI, BScN CEC is an award-winning best-selling author, transformational speaker, blogger, and Certified Executive Coach. She has a heart of a teacher and is certified in Appreciative Inquiry and Emotional Intelligence. Her writing has been published in a variety of print and online magazines. Debra Kasowski International helps executives, entrepreneurs, and organizations boost their productivity, performance, and profits. It all starts with people and passion. Sign up the Success Secrets Newsletter and get your free e-book download today! www.debrakasowski.com
Accountability, in its simplest terms, is doing what you say you are going to do. According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, accountability is “an obligation or willingness to accept responsibility or to account for one’s actions.” Being accountable means you are taking 100 percent responsibility for your results – good or bad. When you are accountable, you make the decision to “own” your part in a situation versus playing the victim of circumstance. The victim mindset is one of complaining, blaming, and making excuses as to why others are responsible for your results or lack of results – you are disowning it!