In the 1988 film Bull Durham, Susan Sarandon says:
“I did not get lured I accept full responsibility for my actions”.
If you want to know the exact context of this quote I suggest you watch the film.
However, in the meantime the reason that this quote struck a chord with me is because this is exactly the sentiment that I get from the most successful individuals and teams that I work with. They accept full responsibility for their actions. They support each other, through success, failure and even that mediocrity in-between. Everyone accepts full responsibility for their actions and also the consequences of them.
If something does not go as well as planned there is no ‘it wasn’t me’ or ‘it wasn’t my fault’, there is just an openness and acceptance of the situation, a reflection on what was learned and agreement about what could be done differently another time – before moving on.
This culture seen in high performing teams is one of psychological safety, a term originated by Dr Amy Edmonson, she describes it as,
‘the belief that one will not be punished or humiliated for speaking up with ideas, questions, concerns, or mistakes, and the team is safe for interpersonal risk taking.’
I bet there is more to learn from baseball. Stay tuned for the next sporting insight.