Blame versus Responsibility

Fri, Oct 7. 2011

Editor: So many persons confuse these two words. They belong on opposite sides of a spectrum. One brings on depression, the other raises self esteem and facilitates healing.{{more}}

In defense of the Hon. Montgomery Daniel, today, I want to address a very simple yet key topic: the difference between blame and responsibility. They are on opposite sides of a spectrum. Even though many people would think they are doing the same thing, when they blame themselves or when they take responsibility for something, they are in fact opposite things. When you are in blame, you are in a negative state. You are going to create low self-esteem; you’re going to feel badly about things. You’re going to feel badly about what you’ve done, or what the other person has done. When you’re in blame, basically you’re plummeting your sense of self. You lose all sense of worth, if you continue to blame yourself; you will probably go into a state of depression. On the other hand, when you take responsibility for something, you acknowledge that you’ve done something wrong, but you are in a proactive, positive state. You are taking measures to correct whatever you’ve done. You are in a state of humility, openness and positivity. So don’t confuse the two. Don’t sit in blame of yourself if you’ve done something you know is wrong. Take responsibility for what it is you’ve done, and take proactive steps to correct it. Get your self-esteem, as you do that proactive stuff, higher. We build self-esteem by accomplishing things. When you are in blame, you usually sit in a more despondent state; and when you are in a …”Taking Responsibility” state, you are more actively working on correcting the issue.

A wise soul once said to me, “The difference between a child and an adult is…an adult can choose how he or she wants to feel.” So what side of the coin are you on: blame or responsibility? The choice is all yours.

Ok…you have a wonderful day!

McG. B