The ability to comprehend fairness (what is fair and what is not) is an evolutionary trait in Humans and certain other mammals.
Why was it important for our ancestors to develop this trait?
This is not the same as right and wrong. This has less to do with the morality of a situation and more to do with maintaining balance within groups of people, and therefore promotes stability and accountability. All of which I have discussed recently.
It really alerts us to potential hypocrisies, which are the bane of all relationships.
As I mentioned in the previous post, some leaders believe their burdens originate in the incompetence of their subordinates. In this way, we are excusing ourselves – It is not me who is to blame, but the slacker!
We know, however, that we must take Ownership even when it is not entirely our fault.
Review the principle of Accountability in the Counterinsurgency Series.
Administering Command and Control
By taking Ownership, and therefore assuming responsibility, you are now completely in control of the situation!
We no longer have to wait for some resolution. Instead, we can act for ourselves. We eliminate other people’s excuses as well. It is a liberating experience for us.
Ownership, it would seem, is not only an antidote for our excuses, but a retroactive antigen for other people’s excuses.
The first step in this process is actually being grateful for what we already have, for what we will receive, and gaining a perspective that allows us to appreciate failures and see them as learning opportunities.
Gratitude is the most powerful emotion Man can muster. It is the lack of gratitude which leads to making really terrible mistakes. When we are ungrateful for what we have, we do things like cheat on our spouses or significant others, we quit our stable job, we say things we don’t mean.
In essence, we destabilize ourselves.
And that is the Tyrant at work behind the scenes. Yes, he’s still there. He’s been waiting for you to slip.
Among the insurgents working for the tyrant is Hypocrisy. But it is easily smothered beneath the consistent application of gratitude.
Immediate Action Drill
It will become important to list what you are grateful for. Begin with a nightly gratitude journal-entry. Set a minimum number of things for which you are grateful – I would suggest 10 things each night.
Each journal-entry cannot contain repetitions from the days before.
Do this for a week, along with the other Immediate Action Drills I have provided. At the end of the week, you’ll no doubt be stretching to find new things to be grateful for. I would recommend reviewing your hourly productivity journal at these points.
By the end of the week, you will have at least 70 items listed. These should be posted somewhere you can see them, or kept on your person for constant review.
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