Quotes About Self-reliance

On the maturity continuum, dependence is the paradigm of you—you take care of me; you come through for me; you didn't come through; I blame you for the results. Independence is the paradigm of I—I can do it; I am responsible; I am self-reliant; I can choose. Interdependence is the paradigm of we—we can do it; we can cooperate; we can combine our talents and abilities and create something greater together.

Independent people can get what they want through

Dependent people need others to get what they want. Independent people can get what they want through their own effort. Interdependent people combine their own efforts with the efforts of others to achieve their greatest success. If I were physically dependent—paralyzed or disabled or limited

Many people wait for something to happen or someone to take care of them. But people who end up with the good jobs are the proactive ones who are solutions to problems, not problems themselves, who seize the initiative to do whatever is necessary, consistent with correct principles, to get the job done.

It means that as human beings, we are responsible for our own lives. Our behavior is a function of our decisions, not our conditions.

And what happens when the source of borrowed strength—be it superior size or physical strength, position, authority, credentials, status symbols, appearance, or past achievements—changes or is no longer there?

As you become truly independent, you have the foundation for effective interdependence.

Dependent people need others to get what they want. Independent people can get what they want through their own efforts.

I am physically interdependent, I am self-reliant and capable, but I also realize that you and I working together can accomplish far more than, even at my best, I could accomplish alone.

If I were independent, physically, I could pretty well make it on my own. Mentally, I could think my own thoughts, I could move from one level of abstraction to another. I could think creatively and analytically and organize and express my thoughts in understandable ways. Emotionally, I would be validated from within. I would be inner directed. My sense of worth would not be a function of being liked or treated well.

dependence is the paradigm of you—you take care of me; you come through for me; you didn't come through; I blame you for the results. Independence is the paradigm of I—I can do it; I am responsible; I am self-reliant; I can choose. Interdependence is the paradigm of we—we can do it; we can cooperate; we can combine our talents and abilities and create something greater together.

self-aware, knowledgeable, proactive individual, unrestricted by the attitudes, behaviors, and actions of others or by many of the circumstances and environmental influences that limit other people.

If you wait to be acted upon, you will be acted upon.

True independence of character empowers us to act rather than be acted upon. It frees us from our dependence on circumstances and other people and is a worthy, liberating goal. But it is not the ultimate goal in effective living.

Use your R and I!" (resourcefulness and initiative).

Proactive people can carry their own weather with them. Whether

We are responsible for our own effectiveness, for our own happiness, and ultimately, I would say, for most of our circumstances.

Proactive people can carry their own weather with them.

Whenever someone in our family, even one of the younger children, takes an irresponsible position and waits for someone else to make things happen or provide a solution, we tell them, "Use your R and I!" (resourcefulness and initiative).

But borrowing strength builds weakness. It builds weakness in the borrower because it reinforces dependence on external factors to get things done.

as human beings, we are responsible for our own lives. Our behavior is a function of our decisions, not our conditions.

Interdependence is a far more mature, more advanced concept. If I am physically interdependent, I am self-reliant and capable, but I also realize that you and I working together can accomplish far more than, even at my best, I could accomplish alone.

Or a person endlessly going to school, never producing, living on other people's golden eggs—the eternal student syndrome.

After all that's been said and written, being proactive comes down to two things. First, take responsibility for your life; and second, take initiative. It's that simple. Be an agent, not a victim. Don't wait for life to happen to you; happen to it. Be the driver of your life, not just a passenger. Live out of your imagination, not your past.