The idea is that as you get older, you get wiser and say goodbye to bad decision making. Well I’ve got something for the person who came up for with this. Gaining life experience does not always lead to better decision making, and it also does not imply taking accountability for your decisions. People always think of accountability as something to expect from others, but it is something you should expect from yourself. Without accountability you cannot see your errors in judgement and correct them, grow from them. Without accountability, you will find yourself stagnant, stuck, still. Your twenties are meant to be a period of constant growth, and while you should give yourself grace, these are stepping stone years; it sets the tone for how you intend to live your life.
So how do we learn to take accountability?
Well firstly, you need to gain some perspective and ask yourself: what role did I play in this? At which point could my actions have escalated or changed the situation at hand? This is not to say that in every situation you are responsible, but if you have the knowledge to make an educated decision yet choose not to, accountability must be taken. It may also be difficult to hold others accountable because we’re all in our 20s, but if they have the same knowledge you did then there are no excuses. Not holding them accountable makes you equally culpable. Secondly, acknowledging the problem isn’t enough, you need action. Holding yourself accountable means doing things differently because you know better and not giving energy to low vibrational situations. A wise man once said “you can’t keep doing the same thing and expecting a different result”: if you want things to change, you have to change your mindset, and your behavior will follow.
Self awareness is the foundation to change.. What does this mean?
I’ve already stated that acknowledging the problem simply is not enough, however, it is the first step to addressing what could be done differently. The hardest part is being truly honest with yourself about what could have gone wrong. When you become self aware of your faults, you can make changes accordingly. So I’ll say it again: SELF AWARENESS IS THE FOUNDATION TO CHANGE! Becoming self aware is the only way to correct your mistakes. If you take anything from this week’s blog post, let it be to be honest with yourself, become aware of what you may lack or need to work on. The whole point is to take what you’ve learned and use it to your advantage! You have all the information so do not waste any more time being in denial. If you want to see change you must first understand what needs to be changed.
With that being said, you can give yourself room to grow while also keeping yourself accountable. You cannot expect from others what you are not capable of doing for yourself. I’ve learned the hard way that repeating old mistakes leaves you exactly where you started, maybe even three steps behind. When you hold yourself accountable, you make better decisions. When you learn from your mistakes and allow yourself to grow, you live a happier life.
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