I was watching the children in my apartment complex play outside the other day. It's so funny how children have such different personalities, right from the start. And many of those character traits stick with them well into adulthood - you can get a feel for what type of person a little girl or little boy will be later in life just by watching them now.
 
As an example, let me go back to an event from May. Mom and I were at McDonalds in the Detroit airport (yes, my family and I have a thing for fast food... health nuts, leave us alone!). There was a little Chinese boy (not more than 3 years old) in front of us with his father, and the father was asking the boy what he wanted to eat. The boy kept waffling back and forth between a cheeseburger and chicken nuggets. The father finally gave up asking the son and ended up ordering nuggets for him, at which point the boy protested loudly, "Hey, I want a cheeseburger!" The father, exasperated, snapped at the son, "You couldn't make up your mind! I had to order for you." So the son began to stomp around and pout.
 
I kept thinking about that and brought the story up to my mother (she hadn't seen the boy and his father, or hadn't been paying attention). "Was I like that?" I asked my mother.
 
"No," said Mom. "You were the type of kid who would show up to McDonalds, already knowing that you wanted Chicken McNuggets. The only time you would get mad would be if anyone tried to talk you out of ordering Chicken McNuggets! And the more anyone would try to talk you out of it, the more determined you would be to get Chicken Nuggets!"
 
I guess I can see myself doing that. :-D Seriously though, I think much of it has to do not only with how your innate personality is but also how you were raised. I was pretty much born decisive and determined, but my parents worked to nurture that into good habits. They also worked hard to teach me to give others respect even with my independent nature, yet simultaneously channeled that fire inside of me to stick up for what I believed, even when my peers tried to pressure me out of it.
 
I can remember one ENDOW discussion in fourth grade, when we were asked a question that I perceived to be unfair. It was one of those "would you rather do (1), or do (2)?" questions and I didn't agree with either choice, so I said "neither". Well, that got a couple of kids riled - so they said, "well, what if you HAD to choose one?" And I distinctly remember telling them, "I don't HAVE to choose anything. I don't like this question, so I'm saying neither. Nobody ever HAS to choose one option unless they want to." (And you know, it was funny - a couple of kids came up to me later saying that they didn't like the question either.)
 
Sometimes that type of skill is acquired or enhanced by your environment. I grew up yelling at newscasters and political figures on the TV set with my father and grandfather. Add that to my opinionated nature, and presto! You have the crazy, outspoken, and stubborn mule that I am today. :-D But when you think back, I think you'll find that many of your strengths and weaknesses were there in your childhood. And depending on how your parents dealt with it (or what events happened throughout your life), some of those traits probably snowballed into much of who you are today.
 
Think about it! Are you the same as the child you were before?