Responsibility. The ability to respond. To act, to make choices.

Self-responsibility is the birthplace of your power. The ability to choose your direction in life. To choose what is and what is not right for you... for your body, your mind, your energy, your wellbeing, your life. That's what I'm talking about. That is to say, the power to direct your self and your life.

Many of us were taught in childhood to obey our parents and societal authorities like teachers, medical professionals, and or law enforcement (police). We were told that to be right and good we had to listen to and follow the direction of someone else to determine what we should do. The message was that someone else knows better than you do about how you should think and act.

That's the early message that most of us receive and that's appropriate in early life, to some degree, the next piece of the puzzle is what's missing. The part where we take that on for ourselves. Where we learn to choose what is right for ourselves. In many ways, this serves our current societal structure to look to those 'in power' for what we should do and obey their directions.

But what we're left with is a dependent society following the advice of others rather than trusting themselves. This keeps old systems in place and creates a dependent society. The more unhappy society is, the more they look for a prescription for how to make it better and they keep looking to the same 'experts' and people 'in power' to tell them how to fix the problems from the previous advice of those 'in power'. Can you see how repetitive and destructive this can become?

The way out is not to put new people in charge or in power or for you to choose 'better' who you will follow. But to look to your own internal guidance for what is right for you in your own life. Who knows better than you what is right for you, given your current circumstances, experiences, and preferences. No one else can know what you know. No one else is living your life.

So following the instructions of others and expecting that guidance to be what leads to you getting to live the life that you desire will never work. It can't work.

The only one in the position to make the right choice for your life IS YOU.