Recycle. Laugh. Film. Appreciate. Congratulate. Plant. Applaud. Encourage. Motivate. Question. Change. Educate. Understand. Challenge. Praise. Disagree. Confront. Build. Try. Love. Paint. Dance. Smile. Know. Earn. Effect. Consider. Untangle. Manage. Lead.

I could have picked any handful of words. The specific words above are not a complete list nor do they have any specific meaning. I chose all of those words because they are verbs.

I do not know how to define “responsible citizenship.” It is not a term that has one concise, all-inclusive definition.

I only know one thing about the definition and that is the part of speech. Responsible citizenship is a verb, an action.

How you choose to change the world is up to you. The path you pave towards positive change will be impacted by your past, your passions, and your skill-set. No two people see the world in the same way. We would all be bored if we interacted with other people that were exactly like us.

The only way to define that term is to do something. Anything.

Get outside. Get talking. Get moving. At the end of your life the change you impart will be a collection of the words you spoke and the actions you took.

Next essay: Jared Lax  – Social responsible and selfish
TEDx at TCU – “What does responsible citizenship look like?”