For some time now, I have felt the need to talk about a social topic that rarely ever gets mentioned. Something that our society just seems to ignore or be very passive about. Rarely do I even hear leaders mention much about this and truth be told, it concerns me. We have all heard of the analogy of the "Pink Elephant in the Corner." We all know it is there but no one wants to talk about it.
What I am getting at is: When was the last time you actually heard someone stand up, take responsibility and admit they were wrong or they made a mistake? You know, a personal (or public if needed) acknowledgment of making a bad choice. Why is it that so many people these days seem to "dodge that bullet" at whatever cost they can? What happened to taking responsibility and just admitting you made a mistake? Is that really so hard to do anymore? Is this traditional way of thinking on its way out the door? Worse yet, what message and example are we sending to our kids by acting like this?
From big corporations, Wall Street, government and all the way down to our local communities, trying to push blame onto someone else seems to run rampant these days. Why? I suspect that due to a lack of self responsibility and accountability, it just seems easier to "pass the buck" when in fact, I believe, just the opposite. Yes, personally, I do think trying to avoid responsibility for our actions does have far greater consequences and impact than just taking the bitter medicine of admitting and accepting.
I admit I have made poor choices in my life (I bet you are shocked to hear that, right?). I have not done things the best way I could. There are things I wish I could go back and change, but I can't. History is set in stone, not in the sand! But when I needed to, I acknowledged, admitted and asked for forgiveness. Yeah, there were probably more times I did this than I want to recall. Why? Because in my heart, I knew it was the right thing to do. I knew if I didn't "come clean" I would carry it around with me for the rest of my life. That burden, was simply not worth carrying. We are only human, we all make mistakes and we all make poor choices from time to time. Hopefully though, after realizing we made a poor choice, we learned enough from it that we won't repeat it. Seriously, why would anyone want to carry the lie and dishonesty around with them for the rest of their life? Is it really worth it? I say no!
I have never sat at the head of a multibillion dollar organization and no, I have never had to answer to shareholders staring me in the face. But trust me, I have been put in the pressure cooker a few times and it is NOT fun. The principals of accepting responsibility and being accountable are all equal, regardless of your "status". You are either accountable or you are not, there is no room for middle ground. I know in my own life, I have been given a lot of grace from many people, even when the outcome was very damaging. I think deep down, most of us have grace to give at all levels but they first want to hear the person or group of people admit they were wrong, then have them take responsibility. It also helps if the person has a "back up plan" to remedy the situation rather then call it quits. Then, when that level of accountability is reached, grace can be released.
In this era, I can see by owning up to our faults rather than pushing them off on someone else, is the right thing to do and it is the right way to raise our kids. It is also the right way to run a business, or organization and to lead people. I don't believe any one person expects you and I to be perfect, but they do expect us to be responsible.
Have a great Friday everyone.
Scott Stewart
Author, Speaker and Inspiring others to a life of greatness.
scott@lovelossandgrowth.com
541-343-3614
P.S. Is your organization considering an inspirational or self improvement speaker at their next event? If so, feel free to contact me for future speaking engagements.
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