Summary: College Success Through Personal Responsibility
College Success Through Personal Responsibility
College Success Through Personal Responsibility
Whether it is an individual going from high school straight into college, or a person who after an extended hiatus decides it is time to complete their dream of obtaining a college degree, there are many challenges college students face to guarantee success. Employing one’s personal responsibility during that difficult time will be fundamental toward achieving their objectives and ensuring they stay focused on their path. A man named Denis Waitley writes, “A sign of wisdom and maturity is when you come to terms with the realization that your decisions cause your rewards and consequences. You are responsible for your life, and …show more content…
your ultimate success depends on the choices you make” . What this means is individuals need to be aware that actions have rewards or punishments, if they want to be successful they need to accept responsibility for their choices.
Personal responsibility to me means accountability for oneself and accepting the positive or negative outcome of your actions. Looking through a dictionary there is no clear definition of personal responsibility; the closest explanation is that of accountability. Accountability is defined as, an obligation or willingness to accept responsibility or to account for one 's actions. Imagine a college student who must write a research paper for one of their courses, they want a high grade on their paper so they make a commitment to write and study for one hour everyday. If the student does not stick to their commitment and gets a lower grade they cannot blame external influences like friends, work, or family. Individuals have to take responsibility for their actions and know that outside factors are not what contribute to their results it is their own actions.
There is definitely a relationship between students who have personal responsibility excelling in studies and acquiring college success for many reasons.
Completing college is a huge feat that requires short and long term goals, confidence, self-discipline, time management, sacrifice, and drive. If students do not display personal responsibility there is nearly no possibility they will have academic success. Responsible students tend to have more self-esteem, which in turn makes the individual more confident in their ability to thrive. Students who possess self-esteem manage to be more successful in life because they feel confident in taking on challenges and risking failure to achieve their goals (SOAR, 2003). Scholars that possess confidence, self-discipline, commitment, organization, and many other traits of personal responsibility are less likely to allow unforeseen circumstances to discontinue their educational progress. If students are in control of their lives and their decisions they can take on any challenge and work towards their goals in an effective …show more content…
manner.
Given the obstacles typical students face when returning to college I know for myself going back to school will require the implementation of many skills.
My plan for utilizing my personal responsibility in my education is: establish goals and objectives, practice time management, be ready to sacrifice certain obligations, and always to remain positive. With setting up my objectives I plan to use what is called S.M.A.R.T goals, specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and timely (Top Achievement, 2011). My S.M.A.R.T goal is to obtain my master’s degree in health care administration with a concentration in emergency management no later than June 30, 2017. With my objective in place I will work on my time management, after speaking with my academic advisor and figuring out how many and which classes I will need to take to obtain my goal it will become easier to organize my
time.
Another tool I plan on using to guarantee my academic success is time management and organization. To ensure I use my time in college efficiently I have developed a system of schedules: daily, weekly, and monthly. In my daily schedule I set aside two hours during the daytime just for school. I have a weekly schedule that has what I should be working on each day for class plus each task prioritized based on importance to ensure completion of certain items first. Finally I created a monthly schedule that has all of my due dates for assignments and projects listed so I can plan accordingly to work on them around personal family obligations like soccer practices, church, work, etcetera. My biggest tool in time management will be to never procrastinate, I am the person who would rather finish the assignment days ahead of time to ensure I can read and reread to check for errors.
Though I have many effective plans in place to make certain I graduate there are things I must remain cautious about throughout my journey. My biggest obstacle to ensure I am successful in college will be learning I have permission to sacrifice some of my personal obligations to complete my goal. I am a very family driven woman and after some recent health scares missing a soccer practice, or a school recital gives me anxiety. However, learning to rely on others around me and reminding myself it will not be like that forever will keep me grounded on the path that lies in front of me. Personal time is something I plan on making sure remains in my schedule at least one-day a week to ensure not only do I maintain my sanity, but also that I have quality time with my children and spouse to refill my energy so I can remain motivated. If I can keep up my energy it will help me always to remain positive which will be very beneficial throughout the entire experience.
In conclusion, there are many reasons someone chooses to go to college be it wanting to improve themselves, getting a high salary job, or just for the experience; however, without having personal responsibility along that journey it will be nearly impossible for students to be successful. If an individual can display personal accountability and learn to accept how their actions affect their lives they can nearly guarantee a successful college experience and can obtain any goal they have placed before them. If a student remains goal-oriented, uses time management, stays motivated, and carries a positive attitude nothing can deter them from their dreams. As Lorii Myers said, “The power behind taking responsibility for your actions lies in putting an end to negative thought patterns. You no longer dwell on what went wrong or focus on whom you are going to blame. You don 't waste time building roadblocks to your success. Instead, you are set free and can now focus on succeeding” (Myers, 2013, Quotes, para. 16).
References
Mackay, H. (January 26, 2012). Harvey Mackay. Retrieved from http://harveymackay.com/column/be-responsible-for-yourself/
Merriam-Webster. (2012). Accountability. Retrieved from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/accountability
Myers, L. (2013). Quotes About Personal Responsibility. Retrieved from http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/personal-responsibility
SOAR. (2003). Developing Self Esteem and a Positive Attitude. Retrieved from http://www.mayland.edu/aca111/SelfEsteem.pdf
Top Achievement. (2011). Creating S.M.A.R.T Goals. Retrieved from http://topachievement.com/smart.html
College Success Through Personal Responsibility
Whether it is an individual going from high school straight into college, or a person who after an extended hiatus decides it is time to complete their dream of obtaining a college degree, there are many challenges college students face to guarantee success. Employing one’s personal responsibility during that difficult time will be fundamental toward achieving their objectives and ensuring they stay focused on their path. A man named Denis Waitley writes, “A sign of wisdom and maturity is when you come to terms with the realization that your decisions cause your rewards and consequences. You are responsible for your life, and …show more content…
your ultimate success depends on the choices you make” . What this means is individuals need to be aware that actions have rewards or punishments, if they want to be successful they need to accept responsibility for their choices.
Personal responsibility to me means accountability for oneself and accepting the positive or negative outcome of your actions. Looking through a dictionary there is no clear definition of personal responsibility; the closest explanation is that of accountability. Accountability is defined as, an obligation or willingness to accept responsibility or to account for one 's actions. Imagine a college student who must write a research paper for one of their courses, they want a high grade on their paper so they make a commitment to write and study for one hour everyday. If the student does not stick to their commitment and gets a lower grade they cannot blame external influences like friends, work, or family. Individuals have to take responsibility for their actions and know that outside factors are not what contribute to their results it is their own actions.
There is definitely a relationship between students who have personal responsibility excelling in studies and acquiring college success for many reasons.
Completing college is a huge feat that requires short and long term goals, confidence, self-discipline, time management, sacrifice, and drive. If students do not display personal responsibility there is nearly no possibility they will have academic success. Responsible students tend to have more self-esteem, which in turn makes the individual more confident in their ability to thrive. Students who possess self-esteem manage to be more successful in life because they feel confident in taking on challenges and risking failure to achieve their goals (SOAR, 2003). Scholars that possess confidence, self-discipline, commitment, organization, and many other traits of personal responsibility are less likely to allow unforeseen circumstances to discontinue their educational progress. If students are in control of their lives and their decisions they can take on any challenge and work towards their goals in an effective …show more content…
manner.
Given the obstacles typical students face when returning to college I know for myself going back to school will require the implementation of many skills.
My plan for utilizing my personal responsibility in my education is: establish goals and objectives, practice time management, be ready to sacrifice certain obligations, and always to remain positive. With setting up my objectives I plan to use what is called S.M.A.R.T goals, specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and timely (Top Achievement, 2011). My S.M.A.R.T goal is to obtain my master’s degree in health care administration with a concentration in emergency management no later than June 30, 2017. With my objective in place I will work on my time management, after speaking with my academic advisor and figuring out how many and which classes I will need to take to obtain my goal it will become easier to organize my
time.
Another tool I plan on using to guarantee my academic success is time management and organization. To ensure I use my time in college efficiently I have developed a system of schedules: daily, weekly, and monthly. In my daily schedule I set aside two hours during the daytime just for school. I have a weekly schedule that has what I should be working on each day for class plus each task prioritized based on importance to ensure completion of certain items first. Finally I created a monthly schedule that has all of my due dates for assignments and projects listed so I can plan accordingly to work on them around personal family obligations like soccer practices, church, work, etcetera. My biggest tool in time management will be to never procrastinate, I am the person who would rather finish the assignment days ahead of time to ensure I can read and reread to check for errors.
Though I have many effective plans in place to make certain I graduate there are things I must remain cautious about throughout my journey. My biggest obstacle to ensure I am successful in college will be learning I have permission to sacrifice some of my personal obligations to complete my goal. I am a very family driven woman and after some recent health scares missing a soccer practice, or a school recital gives me anxiety. However, learning to rely on others around me and reminding myself it will not be like that forever will keep me grounded on the path that lies in front of me. Personal time is something I plan on making sure remains in my schedule at least one-day a week to ensure not only do I maintain my sanity, but also that I have quality time with my children and spouse to refill my energy so I can remain motivated. If I can keep up my energy it will help me always to remain positive which will be very beneficial throughout the entire experience.
In conclusion, there are many reasons someone chooses to go to college be it wanting to improve themselves, getting a high salary job, or just for the experience; however, without having personal responsibility along that journey it will be nearly impossible for students to be successful. If an individual can display personal accountability and learn to accept how their actions affect their lives they can nearly guarantee a successful college experience and can obtain any goal they have placed before them. If a student remains goal-oriented, uses time management, stays motivated, and carries a positive attitude nothing can deter them from their dreams. As Lorii Myers said, “The power behind taking responsibility for your actions lies in putting an end to negative thought patterns. You no longer dwell on what went wrong or focus on whom you are going to blame. You don 't waste time building roadblocks to your success. Instead, you are set free and can now focus on succeeding” (Myers, 2013, Quotes, para. 16).
References
Mackay, H. (January 26, 2012). Harvey Mackay. Retrieved from http://harveymackay.com/column/be-responsible-for-yourself/
Merriam-Webster. (2012). Accountability. Retrieved from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/accountability
Myers, L. (2013). Quotes About Personal Responsibility. Retrieved from http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/personal-responsibility
SOAR. (2003). Developing Self Esteem and a Positive Attitude. Retrieved from http://www.mayland.edu/aca111/SelfEsteem.pdf
Top Achievement. (2011). Creating S.M.A.R.T Goals. Retrieved from http://topachievement.com/smart.html