It wasn’t me!
There are people in leadership positions who blame their staff for a project’s failure. Or, they suggest the market turned. Or, they accuse a competitor of cheating. A failure is never their responsibility; an outside force prevented their success.
There are staff members who fault their supervisor’s ineptitude for their failure to advance. Or, they point fingers at their peers for not doing their share. Or, they accuse the process as being partisan. Lack of upward mobility is never because of their fallings; an external influence is always at fault.
Or, was it?
It is easy and expedient to blame others for one’s problems. And, to some extent, these deflections may ring true. But they do not remove a person’s responsibility to examine their shortcomings.
There comes a point when excuses no longer work. Sometimes a boss or a peer casts these revelations with dire consequences. At other times, one wakes up to the realization that the world can be cruel, unjust, and inconvenient. This awareness comes with the acceptance that no pretense, or anger, or posturing insulates one from the truth.
Moving Forward . . .
With enlightenment, the wise person does not surrender to the world’s chaos. Rather, they consider their own character and complicity with life. This begins their journey to self-awareness. Recognizing that everything is one and interconnected is the first step. Acknowledging and accepting this reality allows one to move forward with courage.
Not seeking to blame or change the behavior of the outside world is the path to clarity. The person who can look within may find that many of their perceived problems vanish. A quiet and clear awareness of what is actually happening allows one to mindfully do less but achieve more.
Outside influences matter but it is what’s on the inside that counts.