All too often we find ourselves in the position to shift focus and responsibility away from ourselves when necessity calls for responsibility. We prefer to avoid the spotlight when our actions serve as the “draw” for such. We would rather NOT take responsibility for our actions.
Whenever we choose to shift focus, dodge the spotlight, make others the “center of negative attention,” we reveal our character.
When I speak to groups of students, I frequently ask who in the group has recently flown to a destination. There are always a few who have. I ask them to share where they flew. All sorts of great destinations surface. Next, I select one student and ask something like, “So, when you boarded the plan to San Francisco and took off, where did you land?”
They often look at me as if to say, “What’s wrong with you Baldie?” They look at me a bit confused and say, “San Francisco, of course!”
“You didn’t land in LA?”
Again, the confused look . . . “Nope,” they say.
“Why not?” I ask.
“Well, I bought the ticket to San Francisco!”
And there is the point!
We land where we intend to go! We buy a ticket to our ultimate destination! We fly a predetermined route! What makes this so important that I write about it? I’m glad you asked (even if you didn’t)!
The point is all about making conscious decisions and taking responsibility for personal actions.
The Lakota, in their Code of Ethics, say it this way: “Make conscious decisions as to who you will be and how you will react. Be responsible for your own actions.” Long before purchasing plane tickets became a common reality, the Lakota knew about the power of predestination! They knew the power of choosing beforehand, how to respond to life. They knew the importance of determining the type of person one would be by focusing on making conscious decisions about who/what one would be BEFORE the situation called for one’s character to emerge. They knew the necessity for taking responsibility for one’s own actions! THAT is character!
We have way too many people in positions of leadership choosing the path of least resistance when it comes to taking responsibility for choices. Perhaps we have way too many people period, shunning the responsibility of personal choice. The more we engage in or allow this type of behavior, the weaker we become as a people and a nation.
Stop blaming others! Stop shunning personal responsibility! Stop waiting for the moment to determine the path you will take!
Start making conscious decisions about the type of person you will be! Start envisioning your reactions before you enter the circumstance! Start embracing the process of predetermination! Start being willing to be responsible for your own actions!
Buy the Ticket!
Peace!
Mark E. Hundley
