We have to take orders, of course, all the time. From bosses, naturally, but also our spouses, friends, law enforcement, government agencies, etc.

We’d all probably rather we give orders than take them, but we do deal with demands on us all the time.

If we shirk responsibility, we wind up, strangely enough, with more orders. Someone decides we don’t see the situation, and then we get directed to do something about it.

Sometimes, as in a marriage, the “order” is just a raised eyebrow, or that certain tone of voice, when asking, “You’re going to put that there?”

I try to observe who it is I am actually taking orders from, and how well they align with my own purposes.

I tend to operate on my own initiative, which so far has mainly pretty good.

But where my initiative is held back, and my responsibility lacking, suddenly I notice I start to get a lot of orders to do SOMETHING.

Also, when I don’t order MYSELF to do a needed thing, or somehow let myself off the hook, then I can expect someone else, at a later date, to fill the vacuum and let me know what I need to be doing next.

I don’t mind obeying orders, especially when they make sense, and are in the direction of what my goals are. When I get a call from a production person saying I need to be on set at 7 a.m., I’m very happy to comply.

But when governments, organizations and individuals who aren’t concerned with my well-being start to order me around, I resent it. I neglect it. Which can lead to an influx of more orders.

This is all just part of being a person. But it is important to look at, particularly as it involves one’s own orders to oneself.

Do you ever ignore your own orders to yourself? Whose orders ARE you obeying today?