Your Career and You: "Placing the Blame"

The chain of events on Capitol Hill these past few weeks provides a good, if unfortunate, lesson in "grown-up-ism." Or, sadly, how not to be seen as such.

From my own perspective...a slightly crabby (today) soon-to-be senior citizen who would like to someday retire...our elected representatives in Congress have demonstrated to an excruciating degree the lack of professionalism that can...and does...derail countries and companies.

'Nuff said. The takeway whether you are just starting out in your career or are well past the novice stage is this: Don't attribute your own shortcomings to someone else's actions.

Blaming "the other guy" has become a national pastime for our country's leadership. "I'm blue, you're red; therefore you're wrong."

"Tweedledum and Tweedledee
Agreed to have a battle
For Tweedledum said Tweedledee
Had spoiled his nice new rattle." *

I'll readily admit I'm a peacemaker. Always have been; always will be. And I'm occasionally (ok...I'll admit...according to my all-knowing spouse... "often") wrong in my sense of direction. But, as soon as I figure out I'm wrong, I look for ways to straighten things out.

Maybe I misunderstood. Or maybe I chose the wrong course of action.

Whatever the case, it's up to me to get back on track.

This is where our kindergartners down in Washington are right now...they appear to have lost sight of the reason they were meeting which was/still is to resolve the nation's debt crisis.

Instead, they're spending a lot of time pointing fingers at each other and doing their level best to shift the fault for this mess that they all have caused on someone else.

Too bad we haven't yet found human-type life on another planet. How cool would that be?!? "It's those damned Martians; they just don't think like us!"

This implies, of course, that you know where you're heading with your actions which also requires being realistic.

It means knowing and accepting your own weaknesses. If it's something out of your range of abilities, let someone else who can do it get the job done and get the credit. You'll have your chance later.

Life is too short, and the world too small, to let your ego take control and cause you to do something you may not be up to at this point. Don't blindly push on, botch it, and then point your finger at someone else.

"Alice said afterwards she had never seen such a fuss made about anything in all her life - the way those two bustled about - and the quantity of things they put on - and the trouble they gave her in tying strings and fastening buttons..."  *
* Through the Looking Glass, Ch. IV, "Tweedledum and Tweedledee"