Victimhood or Responsibility?
This past week I had the privilege of participating in the 5th Annual John G. Eccles Leadership Summit. Almost 200 student leaders came together from a variety of clubs and organizations to learn about topics such as public speaking, planning events, social media, and diversity. One of our keynote speakers was Dr. John Walker from our Educational Leadership program. Dr. Walker described two kinds of leadership languages – one of Victimhood and one of Responsibility. I have been challenged by his presentation ever since as I examine my own way of being in the world.
How often when something goes wrong, when the best laid plans are thwarted, when things don’t pan out as planned for, or results are disappointing at best, do I look outside myself for the cause of the problem and play the victim card? How much easier is it for me to blame someone else rather than to look inside and ask myself how I might have contributed to the issue at hand? I’ve heard it said that whenever you point a finger at someone there are three fingers pointing back to you. The Christian scriptures offer similar wisdom as Jesus challenges us to recognize the log in our own eye rather than focusing on the speck in the eye of our brother or sister.
As we begin a new school year I’m hoping to embrace the responsible approach to the challenges that await me. If I feel myself frustrated or overwhelmed, disappointed or critical, I’m going to take a deep breath and ask myself two questions:
- What have I possibly done myself to contribute to the problem at hand?
- What can I do now to improve the situation for the better?
I recognize that there are real and legitimate times when all of us have truly been victimized and treated unfairly. In these situations I do believe we have both a right and a responsibility to name injustice and oppression and to seek a just solution. However, victimhood can also be a knee-jerk reaction to an unfortunate situation that keeps us from learning valuable lessons and moving forward.
Hopefully all of us who were fortunate to enough to hear Dr. Walker and the many other positive presentations at the Leadership Summit last week will be role models of responsibility rather than victims and blamers. May we welcome this new academic year with a spirit of positive engagement and an attitude of gratitude. Let’s Do This!!
Peace, Anne