November 9, 2008

Taking The Blame

An interesting news story surfaced late last week from an “unnamed advisor” to the McCain campaign that is falling on the entire sword. “He” says it wasn’t Sen. McCain or Gov. Palin that derailed the campaign, it was him. That’s admirable but no one person is to “blame” for losing against a tidal wave. The U.S. economy, the Bush administration, the Democratic party's brilliant campaign and Barack Obama all had something to do with the landslide.

There was another "unnamed" source that called Palin "a diva". The cart lost its wheels quickly after Tuesday night's defeat.

These "sources" seem fishy at best. McCain was the boss. You want to be the President, man up when it doesn’t go your way. Skulking around with unnamed tips is ridiculous.

We've all had to take responsibility for our actions. We are all guilty of hoping it all works out or goes away on its own when we mess up, that’s human nature. But the team needs to assess the damage. It is rarely – if ever – one person’s fault. In any environment, there are usually plenty of mistakes for everyone to eventually take their turn. Mud flinging doesn't help.

I played a lot of hockey at one point in my life and made the decision very young to be a goaltender. I loved it. My hockey mom thought I was a phone call away from being drafted – thanks mom! Suffice to say I had fun and that was the point.

But in hockey, a goal scored is often not the goalie’s fault. Someone may have missed a check, a forward didn’t skate back fast enough into the play, a line change was messed up, or any number of other factors.

Sure the goaltender messes up, but teamwork is not a convenient mind space. You are either part of the team, or you are not. Blame can be flung easily at each other and the mud can just as easily be flung at you.

These may be weak stories during a lull in the news cycle but the point is still clear. In a team environment, everyone is on the same team and at the helm is strong leadership.

km

 
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