Being accountable is often tricky once you embrace and engage it. I remember many years ago I was taught that there are two major types of error. Type ‘A’ error means I am getting it wrong. Type ‘B’ error means I am not getting it right enough; I am missing opportunities. The difference is crucial.
Most individuals, relationships, and organizations I know are overly focused on, if not obsessed with, Type ‘A’ errors. I suppose because the mistakes seem easier to spot, if not correct. Type ‘B’ errors seem to go unnoticed or are under-valued. How often do we identify and hence miss opportunities to improve and/or to do things no one else has thought of? How often do we identify and hence miss opportunities to experiment and, instead, spend almost all of our time on maintaining?
As I reflect upon this it seems to me that ‘Being Accountable’ also comes in two types. One is our responsibility for not getting it wrong; the other for making ‘it’ better than it otherwise would have been.
Robert K. Greenleaf, the father of modern-day servant-leadership asks if those served grow as persons; this is the second type of accountability it seems to me. The Golden Rule, which is present in all of the world’s major faith and philosophic traditions is other example of this type of accountability. Here is another: Love your neighbor as yourself. A challenge indeed it is. Love, in other words, is not just about doing right by someone it is about making things happen with or for someone which would never have happened otherwise. The ‘lover’ and the ‘loved’ are better off because of the loving done and received.
Gentle Reader, I invite you to stop, step aside and reflect a bit. Here are a few guiding questions that you might find to be helpful: At this time in my life, what am I not getting right enough? During the past six months, what are some opportunities I have missed and what are some opportunities I have embraced? During the past year, which persons have grown because I have served them well? How often do I act rooted in love? [AN ASIDE: One of the richest and most powerful men in our country once told me that he did not make a business decision if the decision was not rooted in love. As I observed him interact with others I came to believe him.]
Searcher-Seeker 