True leaders take responsibility when necessary. They understand that the buck stops with them.
They don’t look to cast blame at others but try to find solutions. Nor do they throw their hands in the air when the shit hits the fan.
In highly political organisations, though, you find the dynamic changes. People are in full-on “cover your ass” mode trying to ensure that no one sticks any blame to them. Or try to keep their heads down whenever problems pop up, so they don’t get dragged in.
And these are the so-called leaders—the people at the highest levels.
But to truly make progress, we need people who just steps up and owns the shit. Who sees things going wrong and takes the wheel if no one intends to drive.
They’ll deal with the consequences afterwards. Unfortunately, for many, these people get the shaft. Leaving only the incompetent and irresponsible behind.
But to heck with it. It means you didn’t belong there anyway.
We need leaders like that to bring real change—the people who will stand up and take ownership.
Someone has to do it, so it might as well be you.