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I don’t care anymore if U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas sexually harassed Anita Hill. I cared a lot back in 1991 during his confirmation hearings. I don’t know about you, but I didn’t want a man who did the things Hill said he did deciding the things the Supreme Court decides. At the same time, Thomas vehemently denied Hill’s allegations, and I didn’t want an innocent man denied the opportunity to serve on the Court. Who knows who was telling the truth, but Thomas was confirmed. He has gone on to press the conservative agenda hoped for by then-President George H.W. Bush. And Hill has continued her distinguished teaching career.
But what I do care about is a Supreme Court Justice, occupying one of the premier leadership positions known to humankind, failing to take personal responsibility. And that is exactly what Thomas does in his just-released autobiography, My Grandfather’s Son. Laced with blame, Thomas criticizes broadly. Hill for her allegations. The left for allegedly sponsoring Hill. African-Americans for being too dependent.
The leader who will not take personal responsibility – complete ownership of what is, with no blame, disownment, or neglect – will never have the credibility, the courage, or the ability to inculcate a culture of accountability among his constituents that is needed for effective leadership. And until Thomas owns his life situation and everything that has happened to him, he will not be an effective leader.
Don’t get me wrong…Thomas should have denied the Hill allegations if they were wrong. Indeed, he had a responsibility to state the truth. But once they became history, and he was confirmed to the Court, his focus should be on personal responsibility. What would this look like? How about this, at least with respect to the Hill incident? "I, Clarence Thomas, am completely responsible for the allegations made by Anita Hill and the effects they caused. Although I stand by my denial of her allegations, I understand that I attracted these things into my life and I am working to understand the reasons." This would deepen my confidence in him as a leader. This would not further underscore the incongruence between his words and what others allege about his behavior. This would show courage. This would inspire every constituent of his, and we all are to some extent, to be more accountable in our own lives.
Your Honor, with your book you blew a chance to transcend all that you allege is wrong in the world. But every day is a choice, and opportunity is perpetual. Check out The Source of Leadership, and its companion site, www.thesourceofleadership.com, for more on personal responsibility and seven other drivers of the high-impact leader. |
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Bob Murray, co-owner of the Utah mine that collapsed over three weeks ago, trapping six miners and killing three rescue workers, is a real piece of work. First, he claimed the collapse was caused by an earthquake, a claim soundly refuted by the government. Now he spends most of his time taking swipes at people who want to investigate whether the collapse was caused by his mine's use of the dangerous technique called "retreat mining" or by safety violations, to which his mines are no stranger, and the remainder of his time to those who are critical of coal mining in general. These kinds of reactions cause an exponential increase in the already high level of negative energy resulting from the collapse, deaths, and missing miners. A healthier response would have been along the lines of, "At this point, our sole concern is with the missing miners and their families. We do not know what caused the collapse, but at the appropriate time we will investigate it thoroughly and cooperate with any qualified interested agency. If it was caused in any way by us, we will of course take full responsibility. But right now, our sole focus is saving lives."
If I were a miner, I wouldn't work one minute for a guy like this who seems more interested in blaming, disowning, fighting, and swiping than spending time ensuring my safety and the well-being of me and my family in the event of a tragedy like this. |
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| In the vein of celebrities as leaders (I don't think they have responsibilities to be role models; see March 21, 2007) and my wish that more would capitalize on their opportunities to lead, hats off to Leo DiCaprio who goes all out championing environmental causes. He sits on the board of Matt Petersen's dynamic Global Green (www.globalgreen.org), is a trustee of the National Resources Defense Council (www.nrdc.org), and launched the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation and www.leonardaodicaprio.org to spotlight environmental issues and solutions. He's also working on a number of related film projects. |
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I don't believe so. In past generations, our youth did get a taste of this, although there was likely a fiction in the whole thing. We have learned since that there was a lot more dirt in the lives of celebrities than was disclosed by the media. Today, it's all out there...the good, bad, and ugly. We decry our celebrities - our athletes, rock and hip hop stars, and movie stars - for not being better role models to our youth. But I don't think this is their responsibility. They signed up to entertain; they never committed to being role models. Being a role model is the responsibility of a parent, teacher, coach, and other mentors who personally touch the life of the youth.
That being said, it is too bad that more celebrities don't appreciate and capitalize upon the opportunity to be a role model. They are in a powerful position to, at a minimum, prevent kids from doing negative things with their lives and, at a maximum, change a lot of lives for the better. What if Paris Hilton spent some of her nights working with groups of disadvantaged kids from South Central L.A. instead of getting busted for driving under the influence? What if Ron Artest was running a foundation to help kids who abuse drugs instead of getting busted for fighting with fans or abusing his wife? Something tells me they'd be doing a lot of good for a lot of people. It is their choice not to do it, but I sure wish they chose differently. |
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| JetBlue's CEO, David Neeleman, took a lot of heat for the excruciatingly long delays in New York during the Valentine's Day ice storm. The business media wondered if JetBlue's brand was irreparably tarnished. Personally, I think Neeleman handled the whole thing very well. Reminiscent of Jim Burke's deft handling in 1982 of the Tylenol poisoning situation, Neeleman just said, in effect, "We are sorry. We screwed up and we're sorry. And we'll take action to make it up to you." In an age where many leaders are allergic to the words "I take full responsibility" and "I'm sorry", it was refreshing. |
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| In her extraordinary 2002 book, The Power of Apology, renowned therapist and author Beverly Engel explains how an apology can transform a relationship and, collectively, how apologies can transform the world. Just think where we would be if our leaders really took this to heart. Indeed, our world would be transformed. If our political leaders said, "I am profoundly sorry for leading us into this war. It was a mistake, many lives were lost, and I take full responsibility." If they said, "I acted unethically, imprudently, and irresponsibly. I am truly sorry for everyone I have hurt and will accept full responsibility for the consequences of my actions." If our business leaders said, "I was entrusted with the privilege of managing your invested money and I broke that trust. I was greedy and I wasted your hard-earned money, and I truly feel the pain of your loss and the hardship you will endure. I will pay for my wrongs and work to restore my integrity and credibility." If our religious leaders said, "I helped to create and protect a culture that allowed my colleagues to molest young people for generations. I am sincerely sorry for the devastating pain it has caused to so many people. I accept my legal and moral responsibility, and will work tirelessly for the rest of my days to bring joy and light into people's lives." Why do we rarely see this? As a people, we are quite forgiving. We love redemption. Why can't our leaders see this? Why do they perpetuate the harm caused by their actions by justifying them to the point of absurdity? |
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| A CEO client of mine called a couple weeks ago. His SVP of Sales had blown a key sale. This guy had blown it so badly that he would probably lose his job. Millions of dollars were lost and it was due entirely to his neglect of the prospective sale. I asked the CEO, "So we know the SVP blew it. What is your responsibility?" He talked for awhile about all the things he had done correctly in leading this SVP. I said, "Yes, sounds like you did a lot of things right, but what is your responsibility for the lost sale?" In this conversation, he couldn't find any. He called yesterday and said, "I have been thinking a lot about my responsibility. What the SVP did was irrelevant to me. He was merely a faceless figure in "what is." And "what is" is the only real thing we have. In this case, it is a lost sale. I own "what is." Thus, I didn't select the right SVP for my sales team. I didn't work closely enough with him. I didn't maintain my own contact with key potential customers. I wasn't clear enough in articulating the importance of this sale. I am completely responsible for this situation." Ahhhh! This dude completely gets it. |
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