What eludes people about taking responsibility for their lives and creating long lasting success and happiness? Most of the time people find it easier to blame others for the demise of their lives. Although this may seem to take the pressure off, where does all this blame get you? Nowhere.
So what does it really mean to take full responsibility for your life? It means taking responsibility for your own direction and what happiness would mean for you. This includes taking an honest look at yourself and identifying the areas of your life that need to be changed, and the steps required to achieve that end. Change begins with you.
Steps to start taking responsibility:
- Stop blaming others. You are the creator of your life. Decide to take 100% responsibility for your life, as this helps create the life you envision for yourself.
- Claim your family of origin. Maybe you didn’t have much of a choice growing up, but as an adult, you DO have a choice how you live. You can take a direction that creates greater choices and freedom for you.
- Stop being the victim of your life and become the hero. Staying in the victim role, can keep you stuck in the past and unable to live in the present. We may not be able to change the circumstance, but we can change how we respond and interpret the situation.
- Consider your current situation. Are you making conscious choices that are healthy for you? What about your life can be changed? What is one small change you can start with?
- Empower yourself. There is tremendous freedom when you start to live your life on your terms. There is also an inherent strength in doing this. Use terms such as “I can” and “I will”.
- Don’t be a bystander in your life. Take charge. One way to put yourself on this path is to ask yourself the Miracle Question.
- Love yourself. This includes having self-respect. Don’t short change yourself and not honor the values and goals that are important to you.
- Be emotionally available to yourself. Name and understand your emotions and recognize they are there for a reason – both negative and positive emotions. They both serve a purpose. Learn how to manage them effectively.
- Set limits and boundaries. This is key to taking responsibility for your life. Don’t say “yes” to something you aren’t comfortable with. Learn to say “no.”
These are just a few simple ideas to take responsibility for your life and create success and happiness. What have been some of the things you have done to take responsibility for your life that have proven beneficial?
