The definition of personal responsibility is not one you can just look up in a dictionary and expect to find, but there is no denying a clear definition does exist. Personal Responsibility is taking responsibility for your actions, accepting the consequences that come from those actions and understanding that what you do impacts those around you. In order to be successful in anything in life it is important to understand this definition and live by it. More specifically when it comes to success in the college environment it is important to realize that personal responsibility is key in making it to the end of a degree program. While many college students belief is, as long as you’re staying focused you don’t need a plan, I believe that a plan is necessary and by setting clear goals, having uninterrupted work time, and managing stress levels succeeding in any course will be a breeze.
The first thing I feel that is extremely important as a personal responsibility in order to succeed in school is to set clear goals. By setting goals that are on point with your schoolwork I am holding myself accountable and making sure I meet the deadlines not only set by my instructor but by my own standards. Personally, I hate the feeling of letting myself down just as much or more than letting an instructor down so it works as a double check system. Some goals I will have in participation are being active in discussion boards and doing my part in my group projects. Some other personal goals include to become acquainted with my classmates and teacher, read all the assigned material, and putting sufficient time into all assignments. Although, in education everything doesn’t always goes as planned just as in life, but by setting goals I feel it can do a lot to keep me on the right track. The next thing in my plan to succeed is setting aside uninterrupted work time. [Insert Research here on importance of uninterrupted worktime]. This includes uninterrupted work time for reading, writing, etc. By not cutting this short and setting aside adequate amounts of time needed in advance without any distractions I will be able to do much better quality work. Not only is it proven in studies but I have proved it many times to myself that by focusing on school with no distractions is a certain key to success.
The final and possibly most important part of my plan to succeed is managing my stress levels. As a person that has always struggled with anxiety I tend to let this get in my way and it leads to negative consequences in school. [Insert research about stress levels affecting a persons ability to succeed] I look at everything as too much instead of breaking it down into small portions and often get so stressed out and in my own mind that I just give up completely. I have to realize that grades can’t consume my life and I still must have “me” time where I am not worried about school in order to be successful. By staying on plan and not procrastinating I believe I can effectively manage my stress levels to succeed.
It isn’t always easy to handle the personal responsibility of online courses however very much possible. By sticking to the things I mentioned I believe I will be able to easily succeed in getting a degree. Setting clear goals, making myself set aside uninterrupted time for schoolwork and managing my stress levels are the three things I find most important in succeeding. I just try to remember that nothing worth it ever comes easy and it is about the climb.