Where Does The Buck Stop?

“Man blames fate for other accidents, but feels personally responsible when he makes a hole-in-one!”

–Unknown

It is human nature to seek recognition. Avoiding blame is something we humans master from the early childhood by pulling pranks on others. Eating a candy and blaming somebody else can play as a jest but serious distortions do present a harder to face challenge. When unchecked often enough, the same pattern grows into something much more troublesome. It forces us further into the self-denial predicament each passing day.

We never shudder to accept credit even for those conclusions that remain more dependent on chance. The above quotation originates from a game of golf where a hole-in-one reckons as a masterstroke. It is difficult to see players shying away from glory after such a stroke. The deniers, those that blame fate for every wrong, are proliferating around us, no matter where we watch.

We frequently observe the Owner, the Team Leader or the Chief of Staff taking credit for accomplishments. Many of them fail to share it with the team that helped them with the performance. Do they have a legitimate cause for such negligent actions? I think no one will agree with it!

The strange character of such undesirable action/s is that even fate becomes an accused in the situation we fail to find an individual victim. Same as the insurance firms’ caveat hidden under the guise of ‘Acts of God’ to get out of their responsibility to accept claims, we blame fate.

Is it a fair and straightforward statement when we blame fate for our individual faults? I beg to disagree in an unambiguous manner. In most instances, the absence of readiness, and/or inadequate planning, result in disappointment. However, our impulse to seek for a comfortable route out of problem falls back upon fate.

Sometimes such irresponsible acts result in feelings of pain and hurt, especially when you know the guilty individual is hiding the facts or lying to your face. Keeping in view a person’s record of integrity, we sometimes let the willful act of defiance slide under the rug. Let us not forget repetition of such irresponsible acts can invite serious consequences.

I cannot imagine what serious proportions such unpunished acts could take. Too harsh a punishment may cause more lingering harm than good. Overlooking the folly without even confronting the perpetrator will only go to prove our own weakness and hence compromise authority.

Leadership calls for clearing the air at the earliest possible, irrespective of the consequences. True leaders know how to control the fall-out of a drastic action. Their skills decide how far is far enough to bring order where disorder appears to take roots. They have mastered the techniques to demand absolute integrity from those under their charge.

Those new to such situations or the ones riding the high tide of their authority sometimes overturn the boat midstream, to no one’s advantage. Forgetting to keep in mind the consequences of our thoughts, words, communication and actions can lead to irresponsible behavior. Earlier we correct the imbalance, the better results we can expect.

The preceding curtain raiser is just one minuscule example of irresponsibility with far-reaching consequences. Personality development is a continuous and yet a little hard to explore subject all at once, due to its multiple facets. Please allow me time to discuss other important tenets at regular intervals so we could gain from the same with little more ease.