The difference between dependence and independence is responsibility. People with no responsibility are more prone to be dependent on others. People with more responsibilities are independent. Dependence is the reliance on others to make things happen for you whilst independence is the state of taking actions to make things happen.
These contradictory words are constantly at play in our lives, families, companies and nations. I am the last of four children of my family. As a child growing up, I cared less about what my family will eat or the place we stayed. The responsibility didn’t rest on me to provide shelter and daily bread. It was my dad’s and supported by my mum. I was dependent on them. My parents were independent because they looked after themselves and added us to the equation. If they were dependent on another family for their own daily bread, they couldn't have fulfilled their family responsibilities.
The late Stephen R. Covey postulated the concept of Continuum Maturity. He meant that each of us will travel the ladder of life from the state of dependence through independence to interdependence. He says that you can never become independent if you are still dependent on others. If you think every other person in this world owes you a living, you are mistaken. Yes, someone owes you a living. And that person is not President John Mahama or Barak Obama. That person is the one you have known all your life – YOU. Break free to be independent. Enjoy your day.
June 2014, Knowledge for Living
