Hello Misfit Nation! Welcome to another edition of "Lessons for Hannah!"
In November of 2016, we introduced a new format that we are putting alongside our regular episodes called “Lessons for Hannah.” Hannah is my daughter and one of the main inspirations for the Misfit Entrepreneur. I wanted to have a place where she could go and learn from her daddy and his Misfit friends throughout her life….even after I am gone. If you haven’t listened to the first episode of "Lessons for Hannah," I urge you to as it gives some more background and tells the amazing story of how Hannah came to be in our lives.
"Lessons for Hannah" are short, very useful, and sometimes comical lessons, that I have learned which I want to share with you and give to Hannah to help in your lives. Because I want Hannah to have these for her life, I’m going to speak as though I am talking directly to her. These episodes are a lot of fun and if you think there is a lesson that we should include in these episodes, please don’t hesitate to send it over to us at support@misfitentrepreneur.com. We’d love to share it.
This week’s Lesson for Hannah
Hannah, I want to talk to you about personal responsibility – one of the greatest assets to your success and living an amazing, fulfilled life.
Most people upon hearing the term “Personal Responsibility” may not associate it with living their best life, but I do.
Let me tell you why.
As I write this, I continue to watch many parts of our society erode and give way to anarchy, riots, and emotional outbursts with no logic behind them. And when many of the people that are participating or leading these actions are confronted, they blame everything and everyone besides themselves for what they did or for why they did it.
To me this sad. I feel for them. Because by not taking responsibility, they are giving up all their personal power. Think about it, if you do not take responsibility for your actions, your thoughts, and basically your life, that means that you have given up these things to something or someone else. You have lost control. You have given away your best chess piece. Your personal freedom and individual liberty.
And every time this has been done in history by people and groups, it has not ended well. It has devolved into the destruction of societies, massive poverty, needless suffering and death. Every dictator in history has told those that they have taken over that they are not responsible for their problems, their place in life, and to just give up their rights and liberties to them and they will solve everything and all will be wonderful. And every time people do this, it ends badly.
Personal responsibility, the freedom to think for ourselves and take control of our lives, and yes, take responsibility for our mistakes, failures, and the good things, the wonderful things and yes, bad things we do is the greatest asset we have. When you take personal responsibility, it frees you. It frees you from the forces of groupthink. It frees you from having your value in life dictated to you by someone else or some group. It allows you to chart your own course and be your best. It gives you the ability to reach your potential and not be held back. It gives you everything you need to be the greatest version of yourself and leave your impact on this world.
Do not, under any circumstances, ever give up or surrender your personal responsibility to someone else or some thing. Especially out of fear or anxiety. These are the easiest ways it is taken and when people are most willing to give it up. They throw in the towel – because they just want things to be Ok or “normal. But, that is part of taking personal responsibility. Because things aren’t always going to be OK. It is an illusion that they can be. There will be times of suffering, loss, deep fear, and even catastrophe in our lives – but none of that is ever worth giving up your greatest asset as it is that asset, personal responsibility, and our ability to use it that gets us out of these challenging times and dark places. Without it, we can sink deeper. For example, think of the addict that will not confront their illness and take responsibility. They blame very circumstance and everything and everyone for their problems and in doing this, they slide deeper into darkness. But, if you have ever talked with someone who has been down a road like this and tuned everything around, the same elements are always present. The minute they took responsibility for their life and for taking care of themselves – they started to get better, get the help they needed, and ultimately win over the illness. There are countless stories like this throughout history – many of them are people in society we look up to, from famous leaders, artists, world-changers, and so on. All of them, at some point realized the asset of personal responsibility and used it to its fullest.
Hannah, I have given you many lessons over the years and will continue to do so, but out of all of them, this may be the most important one and it is the underpinning of everything. The lesson to build all lessons on, except for one. There is only one thing that is more important and goes along with this. While, it is critical for you to practice personal responsibility for your life, it is even more important for you to put your faith in God because he will never let you down. Responsibility plus faith in God is the secret to life. Not to get too preachy, but I have it on my wall for a reason – Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me.”
So, to sum it up, Hannah, take personal responsibility for your life, your actions, your thoughts, everything you can control, but make sure you put your faith in God. That is the secret to living an amazing, fulfilled, successful, and happy life.
I love you,
Daddy
Best Quote: Personal responsibility, the freedom to think for ourselves and take control of our lives, and yes, take responsibility for our mistakes, failures, and the good things and bad things we do is the greatest asset we have.
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