Personal responsibility is a factor in everything I do in my life. I have to take that personal responsibility when it comes to taking care of my home, my children, as well as myself. Personal responsibility affects many aspects of life and without personal responsibility my life would be chaos. Taking personal responsibility for my education is extremely important because failure is not an option for me. Even though it is sometimes difficult to take personal responsibility, accepting responsibility for my educational goals will help me to succeed in college.
The definition of personal responsibility to me simply means that I am accountable for all my activities in my life such as my health, finances, my family, school, and my home. Personal responsibility, in my opinion, is also reflective of my personal ethics. Personal responsibility is extremely important because without taking that responsibility for things in my life that I need to take care of, they will not get done. As a stay at home mom, it is my responsibility to take care of my children and my home because no one else is going to do it. “When you’re willing to assume responsibility for the quality of your education, you can create the future of your dreams.” (Ellis, 2011, p. 10)
According to Merriam-Webster (2012), personal means something is done without the interference of another person. “Responsibility is a moral, legal, and mental accountability.” (Responsibility, 2012) This definition describes what responsibility means to me because personality responsibility really has to do with a person’s accountability. Personal responsibility means just that, taking accountability for you without the aid of anyone else. I have to be accountable for succeeding in school because that is my responsibility. There is a relationship between responsibility and success in college because without responsibility nothing would get done.
Personal responsibility and college success can sometimes be a difficult relationship to grasp because it falls completely on me. Nowadays no one wants to take responsibility for anything; they expect that everything will just be given to them. According to Hassel and Lourey (2005), “More than ever, college instructors have reason to believe that their students are out of touch with what their grades really symbolize, why they are even in college, and what responsibilities they have as students.” I have to agree with that quote because I have seen how people are completely out of touch with reality and what their responsibilities are when it comes to life and education. I am responsible for my actions towards to school and getting my work done.
If something does not get finished, I cannot point a finger at anyone other than myself. In order for me to be successful in school I must make sure that I hold myself accountable for my actions, utilize my time management skills and set forth S.M.A.R.T goals. I know from past experiences when I have not done well in a class, I have not blamed the person I should have. Instead it has been easier for me to point my finger at the professor that failed me or gave me a grade I did not think I deserved due to the fact I turned my assignment in late. I have learned that even though I pointed my finger and got upset, the person I really was upset with was myself. I did not turn the paper in on time, I did not put forth as much effort as I know I should have and that is why I received a bad grade. I realize now that I needed to hold myself accountable for those things, they were my responsibility.
It is important to use the tools that are offered at school in order to help aid in my college success. It is my responsibility to use the Center for Writing Excellence when it comes to writing papers for class. If I am struggling with citations, I need to be the one to use the CWE to find the help. I also know that when I need to look up sources for a paper, I can go to the campus library and use the search engine to help me. If I do not use these tools, I will not succeed, they are there and available to me for a reason.
The library is another tool available to me to use in order to help my college success. There are three different search engines available for me to use as well as having the ask a librarian option. The library provides so many methods of searching for the information I need but this information will not just come to me. I have to take the responsibility to go to the library option and begin my search for the information I need. It is my responsibility to use these options though because no one else is going to do my research. My biggest issue that is my responsibility is time management.
It is important for me to manage my time so that I am able to get things done in a less stressful manner. I am the worst at managing my time; I often procrastinate and put things off until the last minute. Every time I try to start setting a schedule for myself and layout my day, I get overwhelmed by all the things I need to do so I end up walking away. I can take that responsibility of time management very serious with my children, just not myself. Setting reminders on my IPhone so it tells me when I have something due for school or any sort of appointment can help me tremendously. Using the calendar in my Outlook can also help me to remember important dates. To help with my time management problems, I need to set S.M.A.R.T. goals for myself so I do not get bombarded like I have been.
S.M.A.R.T. goals are goals that need to be Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timely. It is important for me to use this as a plan for my educational goals. I need to create a plan in order to help aid me in my college success that involves a schedule and address my ethical lens inventory. A goal I have that I believe falls into the S.M.A.R.T. goal category would be that I will finish my Bachelor degree in Business with emphasis in Human Resource Management by 2014. This goal is specific because I am describing what I am getting my degree in. This goal is measurable because I can manage to complete it because it is something that means a lot to me.
I believe that my goal is attainable because I know I can complete it in 2 years, I have already done 3 years of college. This goal is definitely realistic because I can do college because I want to do it. My goal of my degree can be done in a timely manner, 2 years will go by so quickly and it is not a time frame that is not manageable or so far into the future. Some goals that I can add to my plan is to make sure that I read all of the reading materials provided, I study more for tests, I ask for help when I need it, I make sure that I complete my work on time and make sure that I turn it in before it is due. My plan for my personal responsibility and my success in college is simple.
Here is my plan to succeeding in college and I need to stick to this plan in order to succeed. Understanding that I need to set S.M.A.R.T goals for myself will help me to realize I can succeed in college. First off, I need to start with organizing my time better for homework. Setting a schedule by either using my phone, IPAD or even a regular calendar can be helpful to me. Once I get a schedule together for a class, then I am going to begin reading my assignments. I need to also take notes on things within my readings to ensure I understand the materials. I have to participate in all the Learning Team projects because it is my responsibility to be involved in order to get a grade. Putting a plan in order before completing my assignments on time will also ensure that I lessen my procrastination. Setting a plan for every aspect of my life can be beneficial to me so I can succeed at any and everything.
Everyone deals with responsibility differently but for me I have to address it head on in order to achieve success. There are tools available to me that help aid me in my success. It is on me to use the tools that University of Phoenix has to offer because no one else will get it done for me. Time management is really something I need to focus on because it is an area of my life I really struggle with. Managing time will really lessen my stress and ensure that I come out on top with my college success instead of just giving in. Having S.M.A.R.T. goals in my life can also help me to succeed as long as they are goals I know I can achieve. I will be more likely to complete the goals I set for myself if they are S.M.A.R.T. Setting forth a plan on how I go about classes and completing the work will help with my procrastination and allow me to complete my S.M.A.R.T goal of graduating college.
