To be responsible
To be accountable for your actions. To pledge back. To promise. To answer to.
Let me ask you two questions.
- Who wants people leading business and politics to be responsible for keeping their word? To take responsibility?
- Where are you not keeping your promises, including the ones you make silently with yourself?
The radical aspect of responsibility is that we usually get to choose if we want to make that original promise.
Promise a vaccine rollout by “x” time.
Promise to deliver the report by ‘y’ time.
Promise to commit to clean communication.
Failure to deliver, to keep our promises, to not be accountable for the very things we have agreed to, is not only NOT taking responsibility, but it is also the propagation of a lie.
We have the ability to edit our words as we make a declaration.
‘Our intention is to get the project done by this time. There are some elements beyond our control, such as receiving the raw data from this other company. If we experience a delay that we do not expect we will be clear to let you know as soon as we know and propose an alternate timeline.’
This type of statement is to manage expectations, based on the promise we made.
But to make a promise, for whatever reason, be that because you want to be liked, you want to be the hero, you don’t feel you have a choice (we always have a choice), or you live in Walter Mitty land; that you are not able to keep, is to seed a lie and then live it out.
It is no wonder we the people are cynical. We are surrounded by people who refuse to take responsibility for anything.
This reverts to question #2. We can be our word. If we want others to take responsibility, take responsibility at home, in our life. Only then we can insist others do the same.
Citizenship is not passive.
Photo taken June 28th 2021
