Self-reliance is basically counting on yourself, taking responsible for whatever happens to you,

knowing that you have consciously made the decisions that are now affecting you

knowing what is happening now today is the direct result of your activity what you did yesterday

Now being self-reliant doesn’t mean you can’t work with others or trust others

Self Reliance means counting on yourself, trusting yourself, being confident with yourself, being responsible to yourself. Trusting your own instincts, trusting the conclusions that you have developed from your study of experiences and philosophies. Taking the credit that is due to you, learning from the mistakes that you have made, being self-reliant.

Gestalt psychologists give an example of being self-reliant, they say that you are responsible for getting caught in the rain. They say that by deciding not to carry an umbrella everyday, you have made the decision to endure an occasional drenching. Translation: By not being prepared you make the choice of getting caught in some of life’s unpleasant circumstances. be they reign failures, economic losses, relationship losses, professional losses, personal losses, by not being prepared, thinking ahead it’s your choice.

Now here’s the other side of it, by being prepared you increase your chance of success. You increase the likelihood. By being prepared you increase your chance of success of seizing opportunities when they come your way of being ready within yourself to take advantage of once-in-a-lifetime situations.

Some people tend to blame others for their mistakes, blame others for their failures.

Somebody says it’s not my fault the report isn’t done, someone didn’t do their part.

Of course it’s your fault, it’s your report, too. It’s your responsibility to see that everyone you delegated work to does their part.

Now you can’t control what others around you do, but it’s in your own best self-interest that you stay on top of things, especially if it’s going to affect your future.

You think your boss cares that john didn’t do his part? You think he sees john as the bad guy? Of cause not.

All he sees is that the report isn’t done bottom line.

Be responsible for the things that affect you. You can make sure you’re more responsible by checking in with those people who are working with you, the people who make up your team. You can be more responsible by saying, hey john, how are you doing with your part, do you need some help, can we put somebody else in here to help you finish. Now if john consistently doesn’t handle his part, you’ve got to replace john. If he isn’t doing his share, you’ve got to find somebody that will. Or what, it will negatively affect you. You can’t wake up in the morning that the project is due hoping and wishing that john has done his part. No, you’ve got to be responsible because it’s going to affect your career, too.

Now, my approach to my better future very early on in my career was to just go through the day with my fingers crossed, and I used to say something like I should hope things will change for the better, then here’s what I found out: they’re not going to change.

Somebody says, well,  then how will my life ever change, answer: when you change.

When you change, when you get better, it will get better. If you change, it will all change.

Don’t put it on someone else, hope that someone else will change it for you.

Take responsibility for yourself, take personal responsibility.

You can’t change the circumstances or the seasons or the wind, but you can change your reading habits, you can change whether or not you go for the skills, burn the midnight oil, turn yourself around, multiply your value by 2 3 5 10, that you’ve got charge of, that you have control of.

You don’t have control of the constellations but you’ve got control over whether or not you go to night school, take adult classes, learn some new skills, you have control over that. And if you don’t, that’s your fault. You’ve got to take personal responsibility, you got to be self-reliant.

Nobody else can change your life alter your ambitions, pave a golden road for you, but you can, it’s up to you.

Be responsible for yourself. learn to reap the harvest without complaint. This is a sign of growing maturity.