“Before you are a leader, success is about growing yourself. When you become a leader, success is about growing others.” — Jack Welch
There has been so media attention on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Programs of companies &/or organizations. Organizations and individuals proudly post pictures and activities on social media for such events. This is a clearcut way for companies to give back to their communities, employees and certain marginalized groups. From financial to medical assistance, academic scholarships to school repairs, On the Job Training (OJT) Programs up to employment, feeding programs to livelihood programs or waste management to tree planting, are just some of the more popular CSRs being undertaken by companies.
The success of company initiated social responsibility programs would largely depend on the cooperation & support of employees. To sustain it truly depends on the beneficiaries.
Sure, not a few might be attending because it is a required activity to join or it is something that one’s supervisor had so strongly endorsed to support, its success is still going to be determined by personal belief, advocacies & circumstances aligned to the intended impact.
Successful CSRs start with PSRs. What is PSR or Personal Social Responsibility?
First heard of PSR from a former Japanese colleague when he murmured in typical Nihon accent, “drivers in the Philippines do not have any PSR”? I thought what has this to do with drivers? Not used to seeing street chaos or vehicle cris-crossing, honking anytime or speeding up or slowing down in both lanes while traversing national highways coupled with pedestrians that can come from out of nowhere to cross the road might have triggered that remark from him.
“PSR is very important Herrie-san.
Personal Social Responsibility (PSR) is the idea that individuals have a moral duty to act in ways that benefit society—beyond just looking out for themselves. It’s about being conscious of how your choices impact others and the environment, and choosing to contribute positively.
For those unruly drivers, PSR could simply mean consciously complying with a basic traffic rule for vehicle owners like slowing down with caution on pedestrian crossing lanes or motorcycle riders making sure that they are wearing proper safety gear or jitney drivers taking the extra effort at stopping at designated STOP signs only.
PSR requires self-awareness. It starts with recognizing one’s role in the community and how your actions ripple outward. A reckless driver not only causes travel delays but can also cause physical harm if an accident happens.
Personal Social Responsibility builds the foundation for a more empathetic, inclusive, and sustainable society. When individuals take ownership of their positive impact, it encourages a culture of care and accountability.
Some good examples of Personal Social Responsibility (PSR) that ordinary individuals can undertake to positively impact society, even without institutional backing are things that one have been unconsciously doing already
Decades ago, my wife Irene would “usually” complain to me that our youngest son’s school uniform pockets are always full of candy and biscuit wrappers….”sana man lang cash” she would casually joke.
I would’ve castigated Andre Gregory for making his Mom’s weekly laundry task more time consuming until I remembered telling him that wrappers should not be thrown anywhere because they end up clogging drainage systems that lead to floodings. if you do not see any trash bin within the vicinity but instead place them in your pocket and bring them home to be disposed in our trashcan at home. And so, I asked my son to complete his PSR. Bring the wrappers home but thrown them in our trash bin for plastics. We do segregate our trash by the way.
Donating food or old clothes to Hospices as also an activity I chose where I hyad extensively exposed my sons as toddlers. One time, while waiting for the hospice caretaker at local Home for the Aged center in Angeles City, I asked my second son Adrian Gabriel to sing songs for the elderly. He did and got a resounding applause after not because he had a very good singing voice or did a soulful rendition of “Jack & Jill”. It was because it brought so much joy seeing a then toddler singing to show love & care for the abandoned elderly.
Years later, at the University of the Philippines in Diliman, taking care of the marginalized became his way of life. Adrian was the default cook for rallies/protests specially for Lumads protesting against militarization of their ancestral lands. He would be in charge of feeding around 200-300 rallyist though he was a full time pre med student.
Acting with fairness, and compassion for working students or those from the formal & informal service industries has been a demeanor that has been passed on from my parents to my children. Being respectful does not only mean not being verbally rude but also making sure that we as customers do not add to the burden of workers. That is why, after eating in a restaurant, as a family, we always make sure that before leaving a table, it is clean, waste properly segregated and everything is in order so that it lessens the chore load of the cleaning crew.
This is also the reason why our eldest son Arvi Gerard would always make sure that he gives the parking attendant, his barber or the food server, gets a generous service fee because he knows that their income for the day and the food that they could bring home to their families sometimes truly depend on how much we as customers we are willing to give to them any spare for a job well done.
Other good examples of PSR are those that allows an individual to give time, resources, or skills to help others without expecting anything in return.
These are some that we as a family have done through the years. Donating old but still useful clothes or sports gear. Gave away good pairs of basketball shoes to my “basketball players” every year. Feeding indigents with donated excess food, or shelling out spare money to those in dire need due to health reasons or volunteering in river clean up drives or helping neighbors or a co-worker in any way needed without being asked.
In the workplace, treating colleagues with respect, regardless of hierarchy is inexpensive yet impactful. The higher you go, the more respectful one should be.
Donating to causes aligned with your values like anything that has to do with education, health care & charitable contributions through anonymous channels is also well appreciated by recipients.
On a personal note, aside from sharing weekly inspirational messages each Monday in order to promote leadership skills, inspire others, highlight the importance of hard work & the value of being focused on goals, I also intentionally share funny memes on Fridays just to say that there is always a silver lining in everything that happened the past days. With weekends just around the corner, it is time to relax & enjoy the weekend.
I’ve also decided early on that my PSR is to advocate for strengthening Capampangan culture, our language & Filipino traditions by starting with my family & those that are under my span & control which is to the detriment of my nephews, nieces & younger relatives. For a start, everybody should speak Capampangan to each other.
I did get into minor altercations when I was served with “sisig with egg & mayo” in fancy restaurants in the Metro because I know how the original taste & looks like. I have many times made known my displeasure to the point of being labeled a grumpy uncle, when the younger Pampangan generation no longer take time & effort to kiss the hands of their elders. I do call it out. Voicing my displeasure for the utter disregard for such a beautiful & respectful Filipino tradition has become my personal advocacy.
These days, I no longer correct English grammatical errors but do easily frown on a faulty Pampango accent or if the “po & opo” does not end a the statement from the younger generation to the point of sometimes I feel am doing all over again what my late grandfather & grandmother had castigated me in the past. It is full circle for me.
Whenever I have visitors from other parts of the country or balikbayans, I no longer show them the splendor of Clark or the allure of the city of modern Angeles City. Instead, I proudly show them our centuries old churches in different towns and the spectacular Spanish era mansions. I invite them to eat in local restaurants to savor our traditional Capampangan food, delicacies or beverage.
While Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is defined by the collective action for societal benefit which is often covered by company policies, programs, & organizational practices Personal Responsibility (PSR) are altruistic individual actions & choices that ultimately impacts our daily decisions, preferred lifestyle and behavior.
PSR is indeed very personal and it could determine later on, if a Corporate Social Responsibility program becomes a huge success because individual PSR are but a prelude to a group CSR.
GOOD MORNING HARDWORKING PEOPLE!
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