What is Responsibility?
Responsibility means the opportunity or ability to deal with something or of having control over someone. To better understand the term ‘responsibility’, let us divide it into two root words- ‘Response’ and ‘Ability’, which means the ability to respond to the various events that take place in your life. You move into the driver seat and control the steering of your life’s journey.
A great step to achieve a high-quality life is responsibility. As an individual grows and progresses through each phase or stage of his/her life, different responsibilities wait for him/her.
For example, being a responsible child, student, citizen, employee, or even an employer. One must fulfil all these roles and must maintain a high and consistent level of responsibility throughout each of those stages of life.
Importance of Responsibility
Being responsible brings a sense of discipline in an individual. It makes you more confident. Your problem-solving skills are enhanced. Helps improve your decision-making ability.
You happen to be more of an optimist. You become a role model for your friends, children, colleagues, etc. When you realize your responsibility, it becomes easier to gain the respect of the people and to take a decent place in society.
Types of Responsibility
1. Personal/Individual Responsibility
An individual with a highly developed sense of personal responsibility is more likely to succeed in school, in the workplace, and society at large.
This may mean taking care of your newborn, being successful in your career, supporting your partner, and not forgetting about the various bills that all need to be paid, all on the same day.
2. Job-specific Responsibility
In a workplace, responsibility is the obligation to perform a task given to a subordinate by his superior. It flows in an upward direction which means a subordinate will always be responsible to his superior.
Responsibility and Authority go hand in hand; this means that a subordinate who is given responsibility should also be provided with the amount of authority that is required to perform the task effectively.
3. Environmental Responsibility
This type of responsibility is about controlling the use of natural resources and also using them in an effective and efficient manner to reduce environmental impacts and financial costs.
Planting more trees, avoiding deforestation, avoiding the use of plastic, avoiding littering, etc. are some common examples.
4. Social Responsibility
It is to act by following the principles that support humanity and the government at large by giving shelter to the homeless, feeding the poor, etc.
5. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
This implies the duty of business organizations to not harm society. Businesses should be concerned about the welfare of society and should pay heed to what impacts their actions are making on society as a whole.
Many firms conduct CSR activities like education camps, blood donation camps, etc. on weekends for the welfare of society.
6. Moral Responsibility
To be morally responsible means to act per the moral principles that are important to your religion, to live your faith accordingly. For example, indiscrimination, respecting others, being honest, etc.
How to be responsible?
Being responsible simply requires you to follow a certain set of guidelines, in every action you do:
1. Do what you say
If you’ve agreed to do something, just do it. Stick to your words. You will be taken seriously when you follow through your commitments. You will be considered as a sincere and reliable person.
2. Communication is the key
Communication, here, involves receiving a clear set of instructions from the superior to the subordinate. It involves seeking feedback as well.
If you feel that you were unsuccessful at a task, throw light on what you could have done differently to create a better outcome, and communicate with others who can also help you give some insight.
3. Never place the blame
Own up to the actions you take, regardless of its consequences. Take full accountability for your actions, and never put blame on someone or some other factor for your failures. This tells that your life is completely under your control.
4. Admit your mistakes
Accepting your mistakes shows that you take responsibility for your actions and have learned from your mistakes and will prevent you from repeating the same mistake in the future.
5. Don’t procrastinate
If there’s a job that needs to be done, get it done. Missing deadlines is not a trait of a responsible person and by doing things on time it shows you can successfully manage your own life and your commitments.
6. Don’t over-commit yourself
Try not to get an overload of work because if you take on too much, you’ll eventually drop the ball on something and let someone down. Prioritize your work to complete it before the deadline.
CONCLUSION
Responsibility is one of the traits of our character which means that a person can respond to his actions, can take some duties, and face certain consequences that may cause because of his actions.
Responsibility is dependability, conscientiousness, reliability, and trustworthiness. Being able to see that your choices or decisions have a direct impact on your life’s events is what being able to accept responsibility is all about.
By being responsible, you take responsibility for your actions, beliefs, goals, mistakes, and achievements. More simply put, your life is full of choices, and what you do with them governs your whole reality.
“Eventually we all have to accept
– Hubert Selby, Jr.
full and total responsibility for our actions,
everything we have done, and have not done.”
These are the other soft skills one should work on:
- Delegation
- Decisiveness
- Teamwork
- Responsibility
By Manya Rastogi
