Taking responsibility for your actions

It's interesting that I'm going to write about something that should be a very basic concept, yet I'm going to write about it anyway. It's a simple matter of taking responsibility for your actions. When you always live from your highest self, taking responsibility is easy. It is easy to admit mistakes, because we all make them, and we are all constantly growing. But there are many who find it difficult to admit their mistakes, and take responsibility for their actions, as I have found out twice this week by people in my immediate circle. Remember, the ego is always in a defensive position. It is always trying to reinforce the idea that you are "right", and sometimes, it goes the path of proving that simply by not admitting that you were "wrong". In other words, if you did something wrong, as long as you don't admit to it, then you're not wrong. That is the trick of the ego, to always prevent something from happening "to" you, while it shuns your responsibility in a given situation. You are only responsible, and have control of, your actions and reactions. If you're reaction from a situation is to deny your responsibility, then you are not coming from your highest self.


How do you know when this is happening? Well, the easiest tip off, is when confronted on something that you did, you start to tell the other person what they could do to make the situation better. The lesson here is simple, if you screw something up, you fix it. By telling someone else what they could do to make the situation better, your ego is denying responsibility, because the ego never wants you to be wrong. It is absolutely amazing what happens when you say "Yep! It was my fault, what can I do to make it better?" The situation immediately becomes peaceful. There is no more anxiety between the parties, and a peaceful resolution can be found. You have also come from your highest self and bypassed your ego, and you'll find it's not that hard to do! This is a tremendous step in growth! I've said before, that one of the hardest parts of spiritual growth is admitting all the things about yourself that you don't like, and that's including that you have done things wrong in your past. And chances are, if you are addressing that concern, it is because you didn't fully take responsibility for those actions. Sometimes it is not pleasant to admit you made a mistake, or screwed something else, or your actions hurt someone else, but that is simply the ego. If you take it as a learning experience, and openly admit to what your responsibility was, you begin to find a beautiful peace, and that peace will continuously make it easier to take responsibility for your actions next time.

The dis-comfort that we feel when we are arguing over something we did, and we try to tell the others what they could do to make it better, is not caused by the situation itself, but by our reaction to the situation. You will always experience some sort of dis-comfort when you are not coming from your highest self. It is our soul pointing out to us that we need to address something. Again, when you feel pain in your knee if you injure it, it is your body telling you to pay attention to that area and fix it before you keep walking on it. The same is true in a spiritual sense. When you feel that discomfort, it is your consciousness telling you to pay attention to your actions and reactions, because there is something not right with it. If you are open to this energy, you will find it's a perfect road map to overcome ego, and it starts with taking responsibility for your actions.

Don't be afraid. It is absolutely 100% ok to make mistakes. We all do it, and we will continue to do it until we reach that enlightened state. And while admitting to your mistakes and taking responsibility for your actions will propel you down your path, not taking responsibility and making it about something or someone else will only prevent you from walking farther down your path. And your ego will keep you firmly planted where you are until you overcome it. "I'm sorry" can be the most powerful sentence you've ever spoken, both for you and for the other parties involved.

Laugh, love, learn, and enjoy the process. You will make mistakes, but they are only pointers to show you the correct way to go. Enjoy them, learn from them, and realize that they are a part of spiritual growth. And when you can openly admit to them, you will find a beautiful peace in yourself and your surroundings.

Taking responsibility for your actions