Karl Edwards presents Working Matters

Tag: responsibility

  • Question of the Week

    To what degree and in what matters are we “our brother’s keeper” at work?

    The Question of the Week is offered to increase awareness of one’s personal leadership practices and encourage experimentation with creative alternatives.
  • Finding Meaning in the Mean Time

    When we talk about “toughing out a tough job,” (our current podcast discussion series), we are not talking about passively enduring an awful situation until something better comes along.

    We’re talking about finding meaning in the mean time.

    We’re talking about making the time work for you instead of against you.

    We’re talking about taking control of the tough experience and creating as good an experience as possible.

    There are many good reasons to stay put in a less than ideal job situation.

    Two questions for you as we begin this discussion:

    1. Describe a situation where it would be wiser to stay put in a tough job situation.
    2. What is a goal you could set for yourself in such a situation where you would benefit regardless of the difficulties?

    Looking forward to hearing from you.

  • Do Others’ Perceptions Matter?

    My clients know I feel strongly about accepting personal responsibility for how others perceive you.

    Check out the research that Liz Strauss shares on the impact perceptions can have on behavior.

    You not only create perceptions by how you choose to behave, but your behavior choices are affected by how you think others already perceive you!

    Are you inadvertently taking your cues from others? Think about it. It’s not a game or a trap. It’s an issue of self-awareness. Can you take a step back and have a look at what’s going on even while you are a participant?

    On your side,

    – Karl

  • Freedom Is The Key To Engaging Responsibility

    ResponsibilityResponsibility is a reflection of freedom, not control.

    Any obliging of oneself is responsible to the extent that it is an act of freedom. If coerced, forced or manipulated, the responsibility shifts to the controlling party.

    Leaders mistakenly believe that they can delegate responsibility without granting the freedom to choose. “Do this and do it in this way.”

    Some even wonder why their assignment is not greeted with more enthusiasm and appreciation. Bewildered by the ingratitude and (more…)

  • Lessons from Eliot Spitzer

    You have to read this post from Ellen Weber on how our own choices can sabotage our efforts. Even if the fall-out from our choices isn’t as dramatic as Eliot Spitzer’s, we all find ourselves doing things that work against our goals.

    Click over to her Brain-Based Business site and check out her insightful list of ten ways we shoot ourselves in the foot. These include: avoiding risk, dodging reflection, procrastinating, and choosing insincerity among others.

    While not exactly thrilled to see some of my choices on the list, understanding the how and why behind how those choices affect (read damage) my capacity to choose as I’d like in the future, was a real eye-opener. I gained a new motivation to choose differently.

    Who’s side are you on? Not always your own, it seems.

    I say we change that today.

  • Tired of Watching From the Sidelines?

    Hands DrawingThe extent to which we show up is the extent to which we can contribute.

    If we wait at the edge of the room for someone to invite us to the proverbial table, we have only ourselves to blame when no one seems to notice all our talent standing there unused.

    We don’t ask if there is a seat for us. We take a seat… our seat. We wear ourselves comfortably and without second thoughts. And in the process of participating, we become co-authors of the unfolding story.

    If you’re tired of the picture others seem to have of you, then draw one yourself. Don’t leave either the artwork or the interpretation to others without finding a way to participate yourself.

    I think you’d be surprised by how much you will accomplish my merely choosing to show up yourself.

  • No Excuses in 2008!

    No excuses in 2008!

    Instead of a long list of well-meant resolutions, let’s launch the new year with a single intention: No excuses in 2008!

    Others may let me down, circumstances may conspire against me, but I will make no excuse for my own choices. Not in my work, not at my home, not in my attitude.

    Though I may face harsh realities outside of my control, I still control my response to those difficulties. Like the tennis player in a difficult match, I do not choose what comes at me. But I do choose whether or not I will stay in the game. I choose whether I will stay prepared and alert for the unexpected. I choose when my reactions remain primarily defensive and when I turn the tables to take the offense.

    No excuses.

    I will make bold decisions, and I will accept responsibility that those decisions affect the quality of my life and work. The more I recognize my own responsibility in the story, the more I discover my own power to change the story.

    Even through the storms of workplace conflict, career suffocation, stagnant economies, or unexpected job loss, I make no excuses. I will expand my repertoire of responses. I will get help from friends and associates. I will invest in myself and my career. I will try new approaches. I will be honest with myself about what is not working well and try something different. I will learn from my mistakes.

    No excuses.

    I will stay in the game. Let’s make 2008 the best yet.

    On your side,

    – Karl