1. CHARACTER BUILDING SERIES
RESPONSIBILITY

2. Responsibility is one of the most important traits found in leaders
Responsibility is one of the most important traits found in leaders. A leader needs to be responsible and take responsibilities. He can be depended upon to take responsibility for his actions and to live up to his responsibilities completely. i.e. He is ready to be accountable for his actions. He does not have a victim mentality. (He does not hold others responsible for his poor choices or deficiencies). A responsible person is also a person of honesty and integrity.

3. Definitions
There are many definitions of “Responsibility” depending on its usage.
It is the state of being the person who caused something to happen. E.g. “Bola is the one responsible for the dirt in the sitting room”.
It is a duty or task that you are required or expected to do. E.g. “It is Mary’s responsibility to make sure her room is clean always”.
“Responsibility” is something that you should do because it is morally right or legally required. “You have the responsibility to get a driver’s licence before you start to drive a car on the road”.

4. Being responsible shows character
Being responsible shows character. A responsible person is able to act without guidance or supervision because he or she is accountable and answerable for his or her behaviour. Such a person can be depended upon to do things on his or her own. It follows through an obligation.

5. Younger children can be excused for not being responsible
Younger children can be excused for not being responsible. They need someone to watch over them otherwise they may do things that they should not do. This is because they are immature and do things on impulse. As a child grows older however, he or she should become more responsible. A teenager that holds an out-of-control party at her home when her parents are not around is said to be irresponsible. It means she uses her poor judgement and goes against her parents’ wishes and therefore can not be trusted to be left home alone.

6. The “I WILLS” Of Responsibility
I will do the duties and tasks assigned to me whether I am supervised or not.
I will be accountable for my actions and inactions.
I will stand firmly behind my commitments.
I will not blame anyone for my misbehaviour.
I will not have a victim mentality. (I will not hold anyone responsible for my poor choices).

7. Some Responsibilities At Home
To ensure my room is clean at all times.
To leave the toilets as clean or cleaner than I met it.
To wash my plates and leave the kitchen sink clean.
To talk respectfully to my parents and my siblings at all times.

8. Responsibilities As Adult
To pay my tax.
To apply for a driver’s licence if I wish to drive.
To ensure that my car papers are renewed as soon as due.
To ensure that my environment is kept clean so as not to endanger my neighbours.

9. Responsibilities At School
To obey all school rules.
To be respectful to my seniors & teachers.
To be punctual and prepared for every lesson.
To keep my desk and its surroundings clean at all times.
To listen carefully when a teacher is teaching me.
To prepare for test and examinations.
To complete my assignments and submit on time.

10. The Gifts (Benefits) Of Being Responsible.
A person who has a reputation of being responsible is trusted to do things on his or her own without supervision. This gives you a good feeling.
When a child or adult feels they are capable of doing things on their own, it increases their self-esteem and self-worth.
A responsible person is trusted. Trust leads to promotion – A worker who is trusted can soon get assignments of greater responsibility which will lead to salary raises or promotion.
A business that has a reputation of being responsible will gain leadership in its field.
A responsible person gets a good reputation.

11. Summary
A person who has a reputation of being responsible is trusted to take on different tasks. He or she will not blame others if any problem arise. Instead, the person takes full responsibility. Being responsible has its risks but it comes with rewards of self-worth, raises in salary and promotions at home, at school and at work.

12. A dialogue on Responsibility
Speaker 1 – Responsibility….. Now that’s a big word.
Speaker 2 – With a big meaning.
Speaker 3 – One way to think of it is that responsibility is the ability to respond.
Speaker 4 – When something needs to be done, I am able to respond to the need and to take care of it.
Speaker 5 – Even when I don’t feel like it, if it’s the right thing to do, we do it.

13. Quotes
“Most people do not really want freedom, because freedom involves responsibility and most people are frightened of responsibility”. – Sigmund Fred
“The price of greatness is responsibility”. – Winston S. Churchill
“If you hang out with chickens, you are going to chick and if you hang out with eagles, you are going to fly”. – Steve Maraboli

14. “What we call our destiny is truly our character and that character can be altered. The knowledge that we are responsible for our actions and attitudes does not need to be discouraging because it also means we are free to change this destiny”. – Anais Nin
“To say you have no choice is to relieve yourself of responsibility”. – Patrick Ness
“Optimism is a strategy for making a better future. Because unless you believe that the future can be better, you are unlikely to step up and take responsibility for making it so”. – Noam Chomsky

15. “It is easy to dodge our responsibilities but we can not dodge the consequences of dodging”.
“Let everyone sweep in front of his own door and the whole world will be clean”. – Johann Wolfang
“Be the change you want to see in the world”. – Mahatma Ghandi
“You are not only responsible for what you say, but also for what you do not say”. – Martin Luther