The Responsible Decision

THE BUCK STOPS HERE.

If decisions are choices ... and our thinking dictates our decisions—then we are where we are because of our thinking.

The Responsible Decision for Personal Success is a key—it represents the beginning. Taking responsibility for your past will segue you into an extraordinary future of your choosing.

THE BUCK STOPS HERE.

From this moment forward, I will accept responsibility for my past. I understand that the beginning of wisdom is to accept the responsibility for my own problems and that by accepting responsibility for my past, I free myself to move into a bigger, brighter future of my own choosing.

Never again will I blame my parents, spouse, boss, or employees for my present situation. Neither my education nor lack of one, my genetics, or the circumstantial ebb and flow of everyday life will affect my future in a negative way. If I allow myself to blame these uncontrollable forces for my lack of success, I will be forever caught in a web of the past. I will look forward. I will not let my history control my destiny.

The buck stops here. I accept responsibility for my past. I am responsible for my success.

I am where I am today—mentally, physically, spiritually, emotionally, and financially—because of decisions I have made. My decisions have always been governed by my thinking. Therefore, I am where I am today—mentally, physically, spiritually, emotionally, and financially—because of how I think. Today I will begin the process of changing where I am—mentally, physically, spiritually, emotionally, and financially—by changing the way I think.

My thoughts will be constructive, never destructive. My mind will live in the solutions of the future. It will not dwell in the problems of the past. I will seek the association of those who are working and striving to bring about positive changes in the world. I will never seek comfort by associating with those who have decided to be comfortable.

When faced with the opportunity to make a decision, I will make one. I understand that God did not put in me the ability to always make right decisions. He did, however, put in me the ability to make a decision and then make it right. The rise and fall of my emotional tide will not deter me from my course. When I make a decision, I will stand behind it. My energy will go into making the decision. I will waste none on second thoughts. My life will not be an apology. It will be a statement.

The buck stops here. I control my thoughts. I control my emotions.

In the future, when I am tempted to ask the question "Why me?" I will immediately counter with the answer, "Why not me?" Challenges are a gift, an opportunity to learn. Problems are the common thread running through the lives of great men and women. In times of adversity, I will not have a problem to deal with; I will have a choice to make. My thoughts will be clear. I will make the right choice. Adversity is preparation for greatness. I will accept the preparation. Why me? Why not me? I will be prepared for something great!

I accept responsibility for my past. I control my thoughts. I control my emotions. I am responsible for my success.

The buck stops here.

Playing the Blame Game

If you want to hear a great fight, just turn on talk radio. They're relentless, those show hosts.

One side says, "These people need to accept responsibility, and until these people accept responsibility ..."

The other side replies, "But it's not their fault. They're not to blame. Don't you understand ...?"

Both sides present a persuasive argument, but both sides are wrong.

Who or what do we blame? We blame our parents. We blame the weather. We blame the economy. We blame the president. We blame our spouses. It's amazing who we think of to blame.

Where I am today, we tell ourselves, is a consequence of what other people [our parents, for example] and circumstances have done to me. In blaming other people and events, we weaken our power. We argue, "It's not my fault ..." As soon as we subscribe to this line of thinking, our chances for any kind of success dramatically decline.

When I was at my all-time low—homeless, living under a pier—I remember somebody telling me, "Well, you chose this." At first, that infuriated me. I remember thinking, I didn't choose this. If my parents hadn't died, if there had been more insurance, if someone had helped me, if only ...

The problem with this line of thinking is that if you don't accept responsibility for where you are right now, you have no hope of changing your future. I promise you: if it is the president's fault, if it is your neighbor's fault, if it is your spouse's fault, if it is the government's fault, if it is the weather's fault, then you are truly stuck! What are you going to do about the president? What are you going to do about the weather? What can you do about your neighbor? I'll tell you: nothing! But if you can find the answer to your problems in the mirror—if the solution lies within you—well, there is boundless hope because you can start working on yourself today!

What most of the people on talk radio don't seem to understand is that responsibility is not about blame or making you feel bad about your situation. Responsibility is about hope and control. You feel more hopeful when you spread this vastly different perspective about responsibility—you can control your future! Who among us doesn't want a better future? These Seven Decisions can give you a better tomorrow by affecting the choices you make today.

Your day of reckoning is important. You must come to the self-realization that even though you couldn't control any of the crazy things that have happened in your life, your choices in response to those things are what have led you down this path you don't like.

We have the power to make choices that lead us to places we do not like. And that's great news! If we can make choices that lead us to places we don't like, then doesn't it stand to reason that we can also make choices that will lead us to a place we do like? If where we are today is not in our control, then how can tomorrow's fate be better? The game, then, becomes simple: make better choices.

We make our own way. Now that you are completely aware of this, you can claim it, make the decision to take responsibility, and begin living the Responsible Decision: I am responsible for my past and my future.

Why is that important? Until we accept responsibility for...