He's Back

The next piece of the personal goodness puzzle is the the most difficult for many people to adopt. It is embracing accountability. We are not a really good society for embracing accountability anymore. I think we were at one time. Perhaps in the world that Normal Rockwell drew. There is just so much sense of entitlement these days. Personally I blame the trial lawyers. Many of them make a good living by encouraging people to think in terms of entitlement rather than accountability. I would like the trial lawyers to have a stronger sense of ethics about what you actually take to court. They seem to be consumed with chasing chances to impoverish one person to enrich another along with themselves. I do know that I could never win an argument over this point with a good trial lawyer, but I have the feeling nonetheless. After all, aren't we entitled to a legal profession that serves as the first line of defense against silly litigation? Just kidding.

In reality the responsibility for choosing accountability over entitlement is a personal one. Each of us has the job of making reasonable sense of life for ourselves without seeking to hurt others. Embracing accountability in life is the most self-affirming thing that a person can do. Accountable people are seldom victims. Entitled people are always victims. Victims have no healthy source of personal power. (Before you freak out, I do recognize that there is such a thing as a legitimate victim. A person hit by a car in a crosswalk with a walk sign lit is probably a victim. He or she did nothing to create their victimness. If there were no crosswalks or signs perhaps crossing the street unarmed would constitute encouraging victimness. I hope you get the difference.) Accountable people have power because authority goes hand-in-hand with accountability. Embracing accountability gives you the authority you need to meet that accountability. That authority is power in reserve that should be used judiciously to get things done. If you seek no accountability you can have no authority. That means that you cannot be considered the author of solutions or improvements or failures. Successes give us something to support our sense of effectivness. Failures teach important lessons - if we survive them. By the way, you are not entitled to survive your failures. You may be aware that embracing the accountability that goes with being the driver of the car opens the possibility that you might fail and not survive. Embracing accountability for the safety of children can put you in harm's way as they learn what not to do. Embracing accountability can cost you your job if those around you are good at passing blame. So, though it is definitely required for being good to yourself, accountability has a dark side as well. Be accountable if you would be rewarded. Be accountable if you would be recognized for accomplishment. Be accountable if you would be a real person who deserves respect and affection. Next we will cover the last of the five magical ways to be good to yourself. Stay tuned.