What happened to personal responsibility?

Apr 13·1 min read

Had a conversation with my teenage nephew yesterday and he was blaming everything on society and external factors for why he's not doing well in school. Didn't take any ownership. Made me realize how important it is to teach kids that you control your effort and your attitude regardless of circumstances. That's what being a man is about. Taking responsibility for your choices.

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Comments(3)

MMitchell R.RegularApr 13

The personal responsibility thing is tricky because society actually does affect people, but yeah some people use that as an excuse to not take ownership. With my nephew I try to point out that we can acknowledge the systems AND still control our choices. Both things are true.

DDerekRegularApr 13

Honestly the younger generation gets a lot of valid criticism but they inherited some genuinely harder situations. Personal responsibility AND accountability for systems both matter. Can't just tell kids to pull themselves up by bootstraps that don't exist.

LLucas M.RegularApr 13

I think teenagers naturally want to blame stuff on external factors because their brains are still developing the part that handles consequences. I'm trying to teach my kids that yeah the world is unfair sometimes, but you still gotta do your part.