“Below The Line” Days
Article | Accountability Insights
Of course, we all have them. Those days when we want to throw in the towel or blink our eyes and be somewhere else. However, no matter how much we try to ignore or deny reality, we know that our work must get done. Stop and think about it for a moment. How much of your work gets done on days when you wish you could be somewhere else? Probably more than you’d like.
Whenever you’re having one of those days, feeling stuck Below The Line, remember this: you can never get unstuck until you first acknowledge that you’re functioning Below The Line and paying a high price for it. Such acknowledgment gives you the perspective you need to get Above The Line. Here’s a list of telltale signs that you are stuck Below The Line, use them on days when you need some additional help facing yourself and difficult circumstances:
| • | You feel imprisoned by your circumstances. | |
| • | You have difficulty facing and addressing the tough issues. | |
| • | You don’t listen when others say you could do more to achieve better results. | |
| • | Your discussions of problems focus on what you can’t do, rather than on what you can do. | |
| • | You feel unfairly treated and don’t know what to do about it. | |
| • | You avoid the people, meetings, and situations that require you to report on your responsibilities. | |
| • | You frequently waste time and energy “boss or colleague or organization bashing.” | |
| • | You repeatedly find yourself in a defensive posture, giving excuses. |
If you detect any of these telltale signs in yourself, your team, or your organization, act immediately to help yourself or someone else acknowledge those excuses for what they are–impediments to accountability and results. Once this acknowledgment occurs, you and others can begin moving Above The Line, even on those tough days.
For more information about Below The Line and Above The Line behavior and attitudes and their impact on accountability and results, we invite you to join the Accountability Community by visiting www.partnersinleadership.com, where you can review actual client case studies.
Below The Line, Above The Line, and Accountability Community are all registered trademarks of Partners In Leadership, Inc.