Taking responsibility for one’s actions is really hard for some people.  It doesn’t always come naturally to many people to say they messed up and accept the responsibility for the consequences.  We want the consequences to go away just because we are who we are.  We like to blame everyone for everything and the results of that type of thinking can actually affect how well we do in life.

In my practice, one of the things I teach people is that there are things in every personality that will hold one back.  Maybe it is indecision, or anger, or fear.  Maybe you are someone who can’t stick to things and you excuse that behavior by saying you need variety, but you never seem to get ahead.  We all have character flaws that make it difficult for us to excel or sometimes even just to get by.

The problem however comes when we use those flaws as an excuse.  We say things like “well you should never take what I say seriously, I get mad easily and don’t mean anything by what I say”, like everyone should know you are hot headed and it should be okay.  Or when people arrive late to everything with excuses as long as your arm, everyone is just supposed accept that and move one.  The fact of the matter is that our personality flaws should never be an excuse for bad behavior.  We need to take responsibility for who we are and take steps to change our own bad behavior.

What kinds of things to your regularly do that annoy others and you never apologize for?  What kinds of habits do you have that keep you from moving forward?  Are you afraid?  Do people find you abrasive?  Are you too loud?  Think about it and think about how you might be able to overcome these habits and character flaws.  Think how changing might just make you a better person and might actually help you excel at what you do.