I think a lot of the entitlement in my 20s stemmed from the assumption someone else was going to show up and do the work for me.

It wasn’t a completely unfounded idea. My dad, as much as I love both him and my mom, didn’t always say no to me when I needed help out of a jam. In fact, I’m sure it wasn’t until my late-20s when I finally began understanding the value of a hard earned life lesson.

This is likely mellow by today’s standards, but I was bailed out of jams on more than one occasion in college. My time there was a mixed bag. I had a great time, there’s no question about that. Adulthood was within reach by the time I graduated, but getting to that point wasn’t easy.

I changed my major three times, and as four years crept into five, my options were growing thin. They were so limited in fact, I needed special permission to make my final switch and land in an area of study that would allow me to graduate.

Rather than do the responsible thing of speaking with my counselor and working directly with the dean, I leaned on my dad to help facilitate the conversation. Despite it working out in the end, looking back, it’s not the version of myself I wanted to be.

Maybe the title here should be, No One Should Do the Work for You, but I guess it depends on what you want out of life.

Some people have no support system growing up and end up thriving in adulthood. Others have everything handed to them and yet somehow manage to have nothing in the end.

Who do you want to be? Do you want to be the person capable of solving the hard problems in your own life? If so, start today. Do the hard work. No one else can become that person for you.