RAF MILDENHALL, England — Somewhere there’s a young Airman sitting in a jail cell waiting for his supervisor or first sergeant to come pick him up.
But he’s not worried, it’s not his fault he had too much to drink at the pub and decided to attempt the drive home.
Where were his wingmen? Why didn’t someone give him the number to the local Armed Forces Against Drunk Driving organization when he in-processed?
Somewhere else there’s a mid-career Airman waiting to see her commander for writing one too many bad checks. But she’s not worried; it’s not her fault. Her husband never put his ATM withdrawals in the checkbook. And besides, isn’t it supposed to take a couple of days for a check to clear at the commissary or base exchange?
Then again, there’s that officer or civilian who is waiting to see his supervisor about the mistakes on the reports he just submitted. Again, he’s not worried.
“How could the boss possibly be mad at me about the mistakes?” he mutters to himself. “I didn’t compile the data — the employees who work for me did.”
It’s an easy thing to do, passing the buck.
It might be easy, but it’s harder to live with than just accepting responsibility, dealing with the consequences, correcting the issue and getting on with business. Not only that, but living up to your mistakes adds to your credibility — forget the fact that it’s just the right thing to do.
The older I get, the harder I find it to believe that some folks can even see shifting the blame as an option. It’s been almost 20 years since my first Army NCOIC — a native New Yorker with a gravelly voice and a penchant for chewing on cigars — gave me the “personal responsibility” speech.
“Good Soldiers don’t try to shift blame, Cpl. Janes,” he said matter-of-factly. “People can always see through that. You just have to remember, you can delegate authority, but not responsibility. If you keep that in mind — and follow it — not only will your supervisors trust and respect you, but your troops will too.”
Throughout my career, I’ve always tried to live up to that little bit of wisdom former Army Master Sgt. Chris Calkins shared with me when I first became an NCO in the Army. Little did I know how much that philosophy of taking personal responsibility would pay off not only during my stint in the military, but in every area of my life once I adopted it.
It not only applies to your professional life, but also your marriage, raising children, friendships and even the first impressions you make on total strangers.
If some folks put as much energy into accepting personal responsibility as they put into trying to figure out how to shift blame, they’d find their lives not only much happier, but easier to navigate.
Twitter
Facebook
RAF MILDENHALL, England — Somewhere there’s a young Airman sitting in a jail cell waiting for his supervisor or first sergeant to come pick him up.
But he’s not worried, it’s not his fault he had too much to drink at the pub and decided to attempt the drive home.
Where were his wingmen? Why didn’t someone give him the number to the local Armed Forces Against Drunk Driving organization when he in-processed?
Somewhere else there’s a mid-career Airman waiting to see her commander for writing one too many bad checks. But she’s not worried; it’s not her fault. Her husband never put his ATM withdrawals in the checkbook. And besides, isn’t it supposed to take a couple of days for a check to clear at the commissary or base exchange?
Then again, there’s that officer or civilian who is waiting to see his supervisor about the mistakes on the reports he just submitted. Again, he’s not worried.
“How could the boss possibly be mad at me about the mistakes?” he mutters to himself. “I didn’t compile the data — the employees who work for me did.”
It’s an easy thing to do, passing the buck.
It might be easy, but it’s harder to live with than just accepting responsibility, dealing with the consequences, correcting the issue and getting on with business. Not only that, but living up to your mistakes adds to your credibility — forget the fact that it’s just the right thing to do.
The older I get, the harder I find it to believe that some folks can even see shifting the blame as an option. It’s been almost 20 years since my first Army NCOIC — a native New Yorker with a gravelly voice and a penchant for chewing on cigars — gave me the “personal responsibility” speech.
“Good Soldiers don’t try to shift blame, Cpl. Janes,” he said matter-of-factly. “People can always see through that. You just have to remember, you can delegate authority, but not responsibility. If you keep that in mind — and follow it — not only will your supervisors trust and respect you, but your troops will too.”
Throughout my career, I’ve always tried to live up to that little bit of wisdom former Army Master Sgt. Chris Calkins shared with me when I first became an NCO in the Army. Little did I know how much that philosophy of taking personal responsibility would pay off not only during my stint in the military, but in every area of my life once I adopted it.
It not only applies to your professional life, but also your marriage, raising children, friendships and even the first impressions you make on total strangers.
If some folks put as much energy into accepting personal responsibility as they put into trying to figure out how to shift blame, they’d find their lives not only much happier, but easier to navigate.