Personal Responsibility Round Up

By: Roshawn Watson

You are the key to your own success, but personal responsibility seems like such a rare character trait nowadays. This is problematic because the moment you make a quality decision to make changes in your finances, your life changes. Kevin shared this relevant quote earlier this week.

The best day of your life is the one on which you decide your life is your own. No apologies or excuses. No one to lean on, rely on, or blame. The gift is yours – it is an amazing journey – and you alone are responsible for the quality of it. This is the day your life really begins.

~Bob Moawad

One of the reasons we deflect ownership of our problems is because with it comes the burden of solving them. Sometimes we forget that with ownership also comes the freedom of deciding our destinies. For those who chose not to participate in the most recent recession, I applaud you. You are the salt of the earth.

One of my mentor’s business was doing about $4 million a year in revenue when he got very ill. Doctors told him that he could not keep up the pace he was going, and he freaked. He knew there too many aspects of his business that depended on his direct involvement, yet he was no longer in any shape to continue. He painstakingly restructured his business so that he could delegate much more work, and he focused his efforts on his recovery for the next three months. He did not even leave the house. That year, his business revenue increased to $20 million. You see, he did not only feel the responsibility to himself, as he was already doing fine. He felt a responsibility to meet the needs of his entire team! That’s what I call a stretch goal. Instead of allowing his business to crumble or his health to further deteriorate, he took on the challenge and succeeded admirably.

Remember, with most challenges also comes some interesting opportunities.

Thought Question: How do you define being financially responsibly?

Now, it’s time to do the weekly Uncommon Money News and Yakezie Round Up.

Uncommon Money News and Round Up
In preparing to write my posts, I often come across noteworthy and sometimes bizarre financial and business news. Below are links to some of these sites. Enjoy!

To my readers: I am so honored by your support. Together, we are telling thousands of the importance of financial literacy. I absolutely could not do it without you: you are vital! Thank you sincerely.

Personal Finance (Yakezie and other PF bloggers)

My Kids Are In Private School at Everyday Tips And Thoughts – Kris shares an expensive “secret” regarding her kids’ education and her justifications.

Rental Condo Income at Retire By Forty – RTB40 offers a glimpse into the cash flow of his rental condo.

Going Carless: Does It Make Sense at Invest It Wisely – Kevin walks through the financial and other considerations of giving up his leased car for public transportation

Can You Do It Yourself at DIY Investor – Robert discusses when you may need to hire financially professionals

The Difference Between Metaphor and Action at The Biz Of Life – The Grouch reminds us that just because something tragic and horrific happens doesn’t necessarily mean society is to blame.

Portfolio Allocation and Strategy – 101 Centavos – Andrew allows a peak into his portfolio

Paying Allowances From Dividend Stock at Money Reasons – I always love it when Don provides these charts showing how to pay for things with passive dividend income.

Can Rich People Get To Heaven? at Personal Finance By The Book – Joe debunks several myths as he addresses this captivating question.

Business
Industries That Are Bound For Recovery

We are witnessing the beginning of the end of Facebook. These aren’t the symptoms of a company that is winning, but one that is cashing out.’

Myspace to lay off 60% of their staff

Economy
Disappointing Jobless Claims Point to Patchy US Recovery

Unemployment Drops to 9.4% in December

US Banks Reporting Phantom Income on $1.4 Trillion Delinquent Mortgages

Entertainment Money News
Kardashians Sued for Ginormous Debit Card Loss

50 cent Tweets and Quadruples the Value of His Portfolio

Carnivals that I’ve participated in:
Festival of Frugality at Cash Money Life – Toyota Millionaires vs. Mercedes Millionaires

Round ups that linked to posts from this site

Joe at Personal Finance By The Book –Drag Queen Bingo Roundup
Miss T at Prairiee Eco Thrifter – Headed Over Seas Edition
Ray at Squirrelers – Updates and Favorites
Kris at Everyday Tips and Thoughts – Link Round Up: Tired Edition
Andrew at 101 Centavos – Round Up and Random Comments
Don at Money Reasons – MR Review: A Busy Time
Kevin at Invest It Wisely – Weekend Reading: The New Year Begins
Funny at Funny About Money – Moments of Fame

12 comments

Shawn,
I love the personal responsibility topic as it not only forces us admit our problems are our own doing, but also that the solutions are on our shoulders. Sounds very similar to "integrity" to me … a value too often absent in our culture of blaming others and depending on government. I had better quit before my comment becomes a rant. 🙂

Thanks for the mention…always appreciated!
My recent post Switching to a Smart Phone – Roundup

Hello Shawn, thanks for the link. Fully agree, and not to get overly constitutional here, but a right to life and liberty carries the responsibility of caring for that very same life.
My recent post HSE- Health- Safety and Environmental – Safe Work Practices in The Home

People won't take personal responsibility as long as they get bailed out. Think about what happens if you run out of gas. No one comes along and helps you and it ends up messing up your whole day. Thus, very few people run out of gas.

You are welcome for the link. That's really a great point. We have both the freedom and the responsibility for it… we get it all!
My recent post Personal Responsibility Round Up

Yes, I'm not a fan of constant bail outs either. In some cases, they enable our weakness and thus becoming self-defeating.
My recent post Personal Responsibility Round Up

Shawn, thanks for the reference and keep up the good work. To my mind few things are more important than personal respnsibility.
My recent post Quote of the Day- JFK and Milton Friedman

I agree, if we keep dwelling on the past, that's were we stay! I know people that are so focused on past mishaps that they seem to stop developing.

Wow, you example is also great from the perspective of delegating responsibility out to be more profitable! I always read in financial books about hiring smart people and spreading the workload. Buy you actually have an example from real life! That's great!

Oh, I almost forgot, thanks for the mention!
My recent post Business Opportunities Through Family and Friends

Thanks so much Biz. Like your comment suggests, it should be highly prioritized, even when it's uncomfortable.
My recent post Personal Responsibility Round Up

"… if we keep dwelling on the past, that's were we stay! "

Great quote! Yes, in my mind, that story serves as a motivator on so many levels. You are definitely welcome for the link.

Kind Regards,

Shawn
My recent post Personal Responsibility Round Up

Even in your roundups you manage to be philosophical and share some deep wisdom. I like "salt of the earth" because the words can be played in a few ways. You can also look at it as "salting the earth" of those who would see us continue to drive ourselves into more and more debt, just so that a few econometrics can look pretty for the advisors to the president.

I'm glad you enjoyed the quote as well, and thanks for the mention!
My recent post What Are The Best Gas Credit Cards For 2011

Kevin,

You are just way too kind. Yes, I like your spin on the salt of the earth analogy.

Your quote was awesome…never heard of it… but will make a point to remember it!!!
My recent post Politics of Envy

Comments are closed.