Responsible by Choice

By Charles J. Tawk ; Senior Consultant - Leaders Training Institute

Taking responsibility is a matter of choice: the choice to take control of a situation and the will to see matters through. Taking responsibility is easy when events go our way; however, when things go wrong we sometime resort to absolve ourselves from any responsibility and point a finger at others. In the process, we may end-up hurting an innocent person. Can you accept hurting the innocent?

Taking responsibility requires self-reliance; an aptitude not everyone is born with. The development of self-reliance may start at home with parents teaching their children to take pride in what they do, of course, but also to not be afraid of failure; to use failure as a springboard for persistence and learning from mistakes. Once a child grows into adulthood, self-reliance can only be built on the strengths of that person’s character. Do you have the strength?

Often our ego loves to play tricks on us; to convince us that we are unfairly treated and a victim of circumstances. However there are many forks on our life path, and each choice we make determines, for better or for worst, the direction our life will take. As captains of our own ships we have to sail the ocean and we have no one to throw the blame on. Whether in calm seas, through storms or blizzards, our decisions are what shape our life. Are you ready to take control of your ship?

Workplace responsibility suggests that employees take responsibility for their actions, whether inside or outside their regular job duties. Workplace responsibility also implies that responsible employees are accountable for the result of their actions. Unfortunately, some employees will fail to own-up for reasons that vary from laziness, to being overwhelmed by the magnitude of the problem, for fear of failure or for any other reason. Whatever that reason is, if employees fail to take responsibility they will fail their team, their career, and fail to grow. Leaders should help subordinates by providing them with the skills and resources necessary to do their job and, more importantly by creating an environment conducive for the subordinates to take responsibility. Do you consider yourself a leader?

Here are some tips and advices:

• Agree, than do
• Be consistent
• Stop the blame
• Don’t be a whiner
• Do not give excuses
• Be frank and admit your mistakes
• Accept that you cannot control everything
• Be the one that others can count on
• Think more for better judgement Get things done when they should be done
• Handle even the small things

To be responsible is to accept the consequences of your actions, and as Kent Beck said, responsibility cannot be assigned; it can only be accepted.