According to a study published in the Journal of Family Psychology, 18 to 25 year olds felt that accepting responsibility for the consequences of their actions is one of four indicators of adulthood, and it is the most important of four criteria.

Julie Lythcott-Haims in her book How to Raise an Adult: Break Free of the Overparenting Trap and Prepare Your Kid for Success lists the four criteria:

(1) accepting responsibility for the consequences of your actions;

(2) establishing a relationship with parents as an equal adult;

(3) being financially independent from parents; and

(4) deciding on beliefs/values independently of parents/other influences.

But how do you learn to take responsibility for your actions? And how do you make choices and decisions?

In the children’s book, What Should Danny Do? authors help to empower kids by showing them how choices shape their days and ultimately their lives into what they will be.

In our present we create our future. Some choices are small and insignificant, but some are big and can alter our life.

Ability to make choices, be accountable and responsible for consequences is the key criteria of being an adult.

In stress we often regress and make choices based on patterns of behavior we learned in our childhood.

Some of the patterns are infantile and destructive, some are adequate and healthy.

Choices we make under stress are a major indicator of our growth.

Reacting adequately in stress is an indicator of our maturity, authentic growth and spirituality.