“I was framed, framed, I was blamed oh, framed, framed, framed,
Well, I never knew nothin’ but I always get framed.”
- Richie Valens
“I PRAISE YOU 24/7!!!!!! AND THIS HOW YOU DO ME!!!!! YOU EXPECT ME TO LEARN FROM THIS??? HOW???!!! ILL NEVER FORGET THIS!! EVER!!! THX THO…”
Drop kick me, Jesus, through the goalposts of life.
So posted Steve Johnson, wideout receiver for the Buffalo Bills, on Twitter a few hours after a regular season loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers in which he dropped what would have been a game-winning pass. And to whom was this missive addressed? Yep, you guessed it: God. The Almighty Lord, the Ruler of the Universe, the One, the Creator, Yaweh, Adonai, Allah. Yep, that God.
Okay, perhaps Mr. Johnson was caught up in the emotion of the day. It certainly must be difficult to have one’s mistakes broadcast to millions of fans around the globe in full high-definition flat-screen color. That’s a heavy burden to be sure.
And yet . . . there’s something about this comment that bugs the hell out of us.
Beyond demonstrating an ego the size of Mount Rushmore that would invite someone to think that the Master of the Universe would reach down in Ralph Wilson Stadium in Orchard Park, New York, and purposefully knock a football out of one’s hands on a Sunday afternoon (wouldn’t God have something a little more important to deal with?), this statement reveals something far more troubling to us. For in laying responsibility at the feet of God, Mr. Johnson is essentially saying, “Hey, y’all, don’t blame me for dropping the ball. I didn’t have anything to do with it, really. You know I’m a helluva football player, and I don’t make mistakes. Not like this. You looking for someone to blame? Blame God. It was all His fault.”
This is just wrong. Wrong, wrong, wrong.
Accepting personal responsibility for human errors, whether intentional or not, is the currency of building and sustaining a positive reputation (read: brand) with others. We are taught as children not to lie, cheat, steal or blame someone else for our failings. Before anyone can begin to move forward after a mistake, some variation of the following words must be said: “I’m sorry. I screwed up. I didn’t mean to, but I did. Please remember I’m only human, and I’m not perfect. I promise to learn from this and figure out how I can do better in the future. And I will do my best to fix what went wrong.”
Why is this important? Well, for one thing it teaches our children how to navigate the rocky shoals of growing up and getting along with others. When young folks hear a comment like this, it pretty much tells them it’s okay to place blame on others’ shoulders. More to the point here, though, it’s important because accepting personal responsibility reminds us that we are infallible. It reminds us we are, in fact, prone to make errors. It teaches us to act with humility instead of bravado, and confidence rather than arrogance. Most important, it can help us focus on the process of healthy self-improvement. All in all, it’s pretty simple: Face the facts; if you mess up, ‘fess up. Then look inside and figure out as best you can what went wrong so you won’t repeat the mistake.
Sounds pretty simple and straightforward, doesn’t it? Like something you would have heard from your parents, camp counselor, teacher, rabbi or minister. Mr. Johnson, it seems, is forever trapped in a “Family Circus” comic strip replete with “Not Me’s” and “I Dunno’s.”
"You can't pin this on me, copper!"
Most mature adults know and understand this. Okay, now substitute the word “organization” for “personal” and “Our company” for “I.” And add a few attorneys, large shareholders and corporate wonks to the mix, sprinkle in some reporters and then toss ‘em all in the middle of an organizational crisis. Suddenly, the rules have changed. Responsibility is too often viewed as something to be avoided at all costs.
Recovering from a crisis begins before it starts with the words, “We will not lie, cheat, steal or blame someone else for our failings. If we make a mistake, we will say, as quickly and honestly as possible: “We’re sorry. Our company screwed up. We didn’t mean to, but we did. Please remember we’re an organization of humans, and we are not perfect. We promise to learn from this and figure out how we can do better in the future. And we will do our best to fix what went wrong.”
Some companies have learned this the hard way. Others haven’t yet learned it or think the rules don’t apply to them (hint: that’s a mistake from which they’re likely to learn). As reputation designers, our task is to help our clients and superiors learn this lesson before they need to learn it under the gun. How? Well, all too often it’s by pointing out examples of others who didn’t learn it either before the feces hit the rotating wind machine.
As for Mr. Johnson? Well, judging by the reaction on the Web thus far, it’s pretty clear more people will remember him for this lily-livered, lame-brained excuse than for anything else he says or does this season. And as for next season and those to come? Well, let’s just all wish him the best of luck in explaining his comment to the fellow he blamed. Now THAT would be worth watching in HD.
