A collegue who has a bit of a theatrical background recently wrote the following ditti on the white board by my desk.

“To be or not to be
That is the question
Whether it is responsibility or accountability
Dig Deep and take a look inside
It’s all about you.”

I am pretty sure it was a tongue in cheek comment about my oft expressed views on personal accountability.  Although there may have been some sarcasm intended, the sentiments resonated with me.

Dig deep and look inside

So often we blame circumstances for our behaviour.  For example, one of my favorites ” You made me angry so it is not my fault I yelled at you and we argued”

In fact it was your choice.  Anger is an emotion, yelling is a behaviour.   One can influence the other but in the end your behavior can only be decided by you.

Take Control

Never having regrets about how you behave could be a personal value, objective or life style choice.  Whatever context you frame it within, the idea is very powerful.

It is easily measured.  When you have a regret about the way you acted or if you apoligize for your behaviour – count it as a fail.  Keep track.  Frequent misses probably mean you want to change something in how you handle yourself.

Conversly long strings of success, that is no regrets, not only feels good but it raises your esteem in the eyes of others.