Personal Responsibility in a ME Society

I was listening to a Dave Ramsey show this week on the radio as I was driving the kids around, and there was a couple who managed to pay off almost $100,000 in personal debt over a 6 year period. Just like most other Americans, they faced the challenge of having kids, raising kids, late nights, and lack of time together. They sacrificed new cars to drive old clunkers, and they also forewent vacations in order to work longer days, and more over time.

In the end, they made it work – they didn’t have any excuses, and they didn’t blame their money problems on anyone else. Even more, they didn’t look for a hand out

Fast forward a few days, to a movie I caught on Netflix late one night when I couldn’t sleep – called Prescription Thugs. Great documentary, that outlined people’s addiction to prescription drugs. What a great eye opener, one of the best movies I have seen recently.

At the end, they made a few very important points….

We live in a society that doesn’t like to accept responsibility. That goes for many areas of our lives – from our health … to our finances, to our lack of income, our student loans, the list could go on.

The “not me” in our society is a huge problem.   They (“They”) are always at fault.   We always hear outrageous stories about other people who don’t accept responsibility – but the sad truth is that many in our society believe they should not be held responsible for the choices they make and the outcomes of their choices.

We see this from several aspects ~ 

• People’s inability to admit they have trouble handling their finances (if it gets too difficult, just file bankruptcy -or, want it now? Just finance..)
• Inability to take charge of your health (changing habits, lifestyle or eating differently is far more complicated than just visiting a doctor for a prescription to fix something)
• The thought that the government should make it easier and far less complicated to pay back student loans … or that the government should make education “FREE” — after all, you deserve it, right? 
• You can’t get ahead because the government is holding you back – the job market is bad, you can’t find a job in your field or a job with decent pay

A culture of personal responsibility is a great asset to have.  

Unfortunately the lack of personal responsibility is one of the biggest problems we have today as a society – just look at these shocking statistics:

The median working couple in the U.S. has saved only $5,000 for retirement (Source)

Most Americans have less than $1,000 in savings, and 20% have no savings at all (Source)

American credit card debt is due to hit $1 Trillion this year, 2016 (Source)

Americans owe nearly $1.3 trillion in student loan debt, spread out among about 43 million borrowers. In fact, the average Class of 2016 graduate has $37,172 in student loan debt, up six percent from last year. (Source)

…….the average American’s annual prescription drug tab is $1,370. (Source)

….60% of an American’s daily calories come from “ultra processed” food — food that contains ingredients such as flavors, colors, sweeteners and hydrogenated oils, emulsifiers and other additives that you wouldn’t cook with at home.  (Source)

…..two-thirds of Americans are obese or overweight, and why rates of diabetes and heart disease are soaring.. (Source)

Always Someone Else to Blame

Americans are continually buying into the lie that there is always another person or entity to blame – likewise, there is always someone else or something else to depend on.

As a result of that, when the time comes for them to make important decisions that can ultimately affect their health, finances or well being, they are paralyzed.  They just can’t do it, they aren’t willing to do it, and it has become almost too easy to just find a quick fix.

We live in a society where we can buy anything we want, anytime we want – forget the money situation… if we have issues later on, we can refinance, or sell, or simply blame someone else.     If your kids are always sick, tote them into the doc – forget the fact that they are loading up on processed foods that are taking away from their gut bacterial they need to stay healthy and ward off illness – just pick up a prescription, after all, isn’t that what doctors are for?

Don’t Spread the Blame

It’s relatively easy to blame someone or something else ~ and although there is certainly a lack of education in our society, it does not make it ok to blame others for our poor choices.

Credit is easy to obtain from lenders – forget the fact that you don’t have the money now, you can finance with a relatively low interest rate, stretch out the life of the loan, even forego a down payment. No credit, or bad credit – it’s OK!

The health of Americans is getting worse each year ~ rates for diabetes and heart disease are at record levels. Processed food is easy to obtain – coupons are easy to clip, and how can anyone push off “free” food offers? Convenience prevails for the most part, as people have children, busy jobs, schedules and family obligations. Our government has made cheap food easier TO obtain – and it’s not that organic is expensive at all, because it’s not… it just requires a change in habits.  Perhaps a little extra prep time. 

Prescriptions are easy to obtain – just go to the doctor.. most offices pack their days so full they don’t have time to truly assess your problem. They don’t usually question you on what you are eating, or educate you on nutrition – instead, they look for a quick solution in the form of a prescription.  They have taught people that looking outside of the box for wellness is foolish, and that natural alternatives aren’t scientifically proven, thus can’t be relied upon (not to mention they can’t be patented, and without a patent, no money can be made..

Student Loans are soaring ~ most Americans carry them for years, well into marriage with children, and almost as far as a 30-year mortgage. It has become the norm to have a student loan. Children as young as 17-18 years of age are told to go to college, sign up for grants – although the grants might be free money, the government is never going to give you something for “free” without getting a share… financial aid is pushed in the form of loans, and before the child has had the chance to graduate, they have racked up $25 – $35,000 if not more in loans. What a great way to start a career, and prepare for life beyond college.

Saving and retirement has gone on the backburner for most ~ it’s not possible..   with student loans, car payments, and in most cases, dual working parents, it’s still not a possibility. Many might be relying on social security – but others might just be procrastinating until the time is right (I’ll save when I get a raise, when the kids move out, when we sell a car…)  – in the end, few can even commit to saving $1,500 each year in an Emergency Fund. Why save when we have credit cards available for emergencies?

Planning for your Child’s College is almost non-existent for Americans ~ many might think it’s a waste, after all, what if their child doesn’t want to go to college?  Will saving money for him/her make them “spoiled”?  Nobody saved for your college, you were told to work for your education, so therefore your child should too –  right?  

When it comes to your finances, health, situations, playing the victim card instead of taking responsibility will get you absolutely nowhere – broke, in debt, ill health, and in the same place you have been – nowhere.

Where you are, and where you end up going comes down to a change of thinking, and the willingness to react to your thinking. realizing that you are the one in control of your situation.   Nobody has to rely on the government, credit card company, bank, or their job to turn things around. 

Pick up one of these personal finance books and make the decision to take responsibility for your situation on your own – whether it be your health, shopping habits, family’s eating habits, financial woes and more… not only will you prosper from the challenge, you will enjoy the freedom that comes along with knowing you can rely on yourself instead of depending on someone else.