Accepting Responsibility

A Story of Bill Russell (Legendary Celtic Basketball Player) by Jim Rohn:

Most people dread accepting responsibility. That’s just a fact of life, and we can see it in operation every day. Yes, we can see avoidance of responsibility all the time in both our personal and professional lives. And here’s something else we can see just as often: We can see that most people aren’t as successful as they wish they were. Do you see there is a connection between these two very common phenomena?

It’s in your best interest to take responsibility for everything you do. But that’s only the beginning. Many times it’s even best to take responsibility for the mistakes of others, especially when you’re in a managerial or leadership role.

During the years when professional basketball was just beginning to become really popular, Bill Russell, who played center for the Boston Celtics, was one of the greatest players in the pro league. He was especially known for his rebounding and his defensive skills.

But like a lot of very tall centers, Russell was never much of a free throw shooter. His free throw percentage was quite a bit below average, in fact. But this low percentage didn’t really give a clear picture of Russell’s ability as an athlete. And in one game he gave a very convincing demonstration of this.

It was the final game of a championship series between Boston and the Los Angeles Lakers. With about 12 seconds left to play, the Lakers were behind by one point and Boston had the ball. It was obvious that the Lakers would have to foul one of Boston’s players in order to get the ball back, and they chose to foul Bill Russell.

This was a perfectly logical choice, since statistically Russell was the worst free throw shooter on the court at that moment. If he missed the shot, the Lakers would probably get the ball back and they’d still have enough time to try to win the game. But if Russell made his first free throw, the Lakers’ chances would be seriously diminished. And if he made both shots, the game would essentially be over.

Bill Russell had a very peculiar style of shooting free throws. Today, no self-respecting basketball player anywhere in America would attempt it. Aside from the question of whether it’s an effective way to shoot a basket, it just looked too ridiculous. Whenever he had to shoot a free throw, the six-foot-eleven Russell would start off holding the ball in both hands about waist high, then he’d squat down and as he straightened up he’d let go of the ball. It looked like he was trying to throw a bucket of dirt over a wall.

But regardless of how he looked, as soon as Bill Russell was fouled, he knew the Celtics were going to win the game. He was absolutely certain of it because, in a situation like this, statistics and percentages mean nothing. There was a much more important factor at work, something that no one has found a way to express in numbers and decimal points.

Simply put, Bill Russell was a player who wanted to take responsibility for the success or failure of his team. He wanted the weight on his shoulders in a situation like this. No possibility for excuses. No possibility of blaming anyone else if the game was lost. No second-guessing. Bill Russell wanted the ball in his own hands and nobody else’s. And, like magic, even if he’d missed every free throw he’d ever shot in his life before this, he knew he was going to make this one. And that is exactly what happened.

That is what virtually always happens when a man or woman accepts responsibility eagerly and with confidence. I’ve always felt that accepting responsibility is one of the highest forms of human maturity. A willingness to be accountable, to put yourself on the line, is really the defining characteristic of adulthood.

Stories To Share --- Bobby's Gift

Bobby was getting cold sitting in his backyard in the snow. Bobby didn't wear boots; he didn't like them and anyway, he didn't own any. The thin sneakers he wore had a few holes in them and they did a poor job keeping out the cold.

Bobby had been in his backyard for about an hour already. And, try as he might, he could not come up with an idea for his mother's Christmas gift. He shook his head as he thought, “This is useless. Even if I do come up with an idea, I don't have any money to spend.”

Ever since his father had passed away three years earlier, the family of five had struggled. It wasn't because his mother didn't care, or try. There just never seemed to be enough. She worked nights at the hospital, but the small wage that she was earning could only be stretched so far.

What the family lacked in money and material things, it more than made up for in love and family unity. Bobby had two older and one younger sister, who ran the household in their mother's absence.

All three of his sisters had already made beautiful gifts for their mother. Somehow it just wasn't fair. Here it was Christmas Eve already, and he had nothing.

Wiping a tear from his eye, Bobby kicked the snow and started to walk down to the street where the shops and stores were. It wasn't easy being six without a father, especially when he needed a man to talk to.

Bobby walked from shop to shop, looking into each decorated window. Everything seemed so beautiful and so out of reach. It was starting to get dark, and Bobby reluctantly turned to walk home when suddenly his eyes caught the glimmer of the setting sun's rays reflecting off something along the curb. He reached down and discovered a shiny dime.

Never before has anyone felt so wealthy as Bobby felt at that moment. As he held his new found treasure, a warmth spread throughout his entire body and he walked into the first store he saw. His excitement quickly turned cold when salesperson after salesperson told him that he could not buy anything with only a dime.

He saw a flower shop and went inside to wait in line. When the shop owner asked if he could help him, Bobby presented the dime and asked if he could buy one flower for his mother's Christmas gift. The shop owner looked at Bobby and his 10-cent offering. Then he put his hand on Bobby's shoulder and said to him, “You just wait here and I'll see what I can do for you.”

As Bobby waited, he looked at the beautiful flowers, and even though he was a boy, he could see why mothers and girls liked flowers.

The sound of the door closing as the last customer left jolted Bobby back to reality. All alone in the shop, Bobby began to feel alone and afraid.

Suddenly the shop owner came out and moved to the counter. There, before Bobby's eyes, lay twelve long-stem red roses, with leaves of green and tiny white flowers all tied together with a big silver bow. Bobby's heart sank as the owner picked them up and placed them gently into a long white box.

“That will be 10 cents young man,” the shop owner said, reaching out his hand for the dime. Slowly, Bobby moved his hand to give the man his dime. Could this be true? No one else would give him a thing for his dime! Sensing the boy's reluctance, the shop owner added, “I just happened to have some roses on sale for 10 cents a dozen. Would you like them?”

This time Bobby did not hesitate, and when the man placed the long box into his hands, he knew it was true. Walking out the door that the owner was holding for him, he heard the shop keeper say, “Merry Christmas, son.”

As he returned inside, the shop keeper’s wife walked out. “Who were you talking to back there and where are the roses you were fixing?” Staring out the window and blinking the tears from his eyes, he replied, “A strange thing happened to me this morning. While I was setting up things to open the shop, I thought I heard a voice telling me to set aside a dozen of my best roses for a special gift. I wasn't sure at the time whether I had lost my mind or what, but I set them aside anyway. Then just a few minutes ago, a little boy came into the shop and wanted to buy a flower for his mother with one small dime.

“When I looked at him, I saw myself many years ago. I too was a poor boy with nothing to buy my mother for a Christmas gift. A bearded man, whom I never knew, stopped me on the street and told me that he wanted to give me 10 dollars.

“When I saw that little boy tonight, I knew who that voice was, and I put together a dozen of my very best roses.”

The shop owner and his wife hugged each other tightly, and as they stepped out into the bitter cold air, they somehow didn't feel cold at all.

Stories to Share --- I BELIEVE

I hope each of you can believe in many of these, as I do.

I believe …That we don't have to change friends if we understand that friends change.

I believe …That no matter how good a friend is, they're going to hurt you every once in a while and, you must forgive them for that.

I believe …That true friendship continues to grow, even over the longest distance.

Same goes for true love.

I believe …That you can do something in an instant that will give you heartache for life.

I believe …That it's taking me a long time to become the person I want to be.

I believe …That you should always leave loved ones with loving words. It may be the last time you see them.

I believe …That you can keep going long after you can't.

I believe …That we are responsible for what we do, no matter how we feel.

I believe …That either you control your attitude or it controls you.

I believe …That regardless of how hot and steamy a relationship is at first, the passion fades and there had better be something else to take its place.

I believe …That heroes are the people who do what has to be done when it needs to be done, regardless of the consequences.

I believe …That money is a lousy way of keeping score.

I believe …That my best friend and I can do anything or nothing and have the best time!

I believe …That sometimes the people you expect to kick you when you're down will be the ones to help you get back up.

I believe …That sometimes when I'm angry I have the right to be angry, but that doesn't give me the right to be cruel.

I believe …That just because someone doesn't love you the way you want them to doesn't mean they don't love you with all they have.

I believe …That maturity has more to do with what types of experiences you've had and what you've learned from them and less to do with how many birthdays you've celebrated.

I believe …That it isn't always enough to be forgiven by others.

Sometimes you have to learn to forgive yourself.

I believe …That no matter how bad your heart is broken the world doesn't stop for your grief.

I believe …That our background and circumstances may have influenced who we are, but we are responsible for who we become.

I believe …That just because two people argue, it doesn't mean they don't love each other. And just because they don't argue, it doesn't mean they do.

I believe …That you shouldn't be so eager to find out a secret. It could change your life forever.

I believe …That two people can look at the exact same thing and see something totally different.

I believe …That your life can be changed in a matter of hours by people who don't even know you.

I believe …That even when you think you have no more to give, when a friend cries out to you, you will find the strength to help.

I believe …That credentials on the wall do not make you a decent human being.

I believe …That the people you care about most in life are the essence of life.

Tell all of the people in your life that you care about today how much you love them and what they mean to you...do it and do it now!!!

Love the Opportunity by Jim Rohn

Somebody said you have to love what you do, but that’s not necessarily true. What is true is that you have to love the opportunity—the opportunity to build life, future, health, success and fortune. Knocking on someone’s door or making that extra call may not be something you love to do, but you love the opportunity of what might be behind that door or call.

For example, a guy says, “I’m digging ditches. Should I love digging ditches?” The answer is, “No, you don’t have to love digging ditches, but if it is your first entry onto the ladder of success, you say, ‘I’m glad somebody gave me the opportunity to dig ditches, and I’m going to do it so well, I won’t be here long.’ ”

You can be inspired by having found something, even though you are making mistakes in the beginning, and even though it is a little distasteful taking on a new discipline that you haven’t learned before. You don’t have to love it; you just have to learn to appreciate where you live, appreciate opportunity and appreciate the person who brought you the good news—the person who found you.

Appreciate the person who believed in you before you believed in yourself. Appreciate the person who said, “Hey, if I can do it, you can do it.”

If you will embrace the disciplines associated with the new opportunity, and you will soon find that your self-confidence will start to grow, that you will go from being a skeptic to being a believer. And soon, when you go from person to person, talking to people, you will find it to be the most thrilling opportunity in the world. Every person you meet—what could it be? Unlimited! Maybe a friend for life! The next person could be an open door to retiring. The next person could be a colleague for years to come. It’s big-time stuff. And sometimes, in the beginning, when we are just getting started, we don’t always see how big it is.

So, before you are tempted to give up or get discouraged, remember, all success is based on long-term commitment, faith, discipline, attitude and a few steppingstones along the way. You might not like the stone you are on right now, but it’s sure to be one of the stones that leads to great opportunities in the future.

Just The Facts - Frankly, I Don't Give A Damn

The smartest guy I've ever known once told me something so profound I've never forgotten it “Frankly My Dear, I Don't Give a Damn”... and it's shaped my career over many years.

He was a gruff old guy named Ken and Ken had a law degree but never chose to practice law. Instead, he made a ton of money rescuing nearly broke car dealers from certain bankruptcy. He was a turnaround specialist long before I ever heard that term associated with corporate America.

Ken had the ability to look at a problem... no matter how complex... and almost immediately cut through the noise and identify the simplest solution.

Here's what Ken told me..."There is no one deal that will ever make you or break you. Never spend one moment in the middle of a presentation worrying about whether or not the person in front of you is going to say yes or no. Your job is to present the facts. The decision is all theirs."

Your commitment is to the process... never become emotionally attached to the outcome.

Some people call it posture but it's much more than that. It's the supremely confident belief that what you're offering the prospect is infinitely more valuable than what you're asking them to give up in exchange. It's not something you conjure up... it's something you walk and talk every day.

When I sit down with a prospect I KNOW that what I have to offer is nothing short of absolute freedom. Either the light comes on for them as they learn the facts or it doesn't. Either way is truly okay with me... I can't force or beg people to make money.

The only thing you can be responsible for is making sure they have enough information to make a decision for the right reasons. You don't want them to say no for the wrong reason and you sure don't want them to say yes for the wrong reason... that's worse than getting a no in the first place.

But for that process to work effectively you have to convey the attitude...no...the truth...that your only interest at that moment is making sure they get the facts.

I've said this to prospects many times..."Joe, my only obligation or responsibility here is to make sure you get enough facts about this business to make the decision that's right for you. Don't think for one moment that I'm going to miss any meals if you say no...and I'm not going to get rich today if you say yes. Joe, my point is this...there's not going to be any pressure to do anything. The final decision is yours to make. I'll respect that no matter what and we'll both be happy when it's done."

Now, if you said something like that with complete honesty... to your prospects before every presentation do you think they'd pay closer attention? Do you think they'd see you as coming from a position of strength or a position of weakness? Do you think if they paid closer attention they might see something they otherwise might have missed because their defenses were up? Do you think that would result in more product sales or sign-ups?

I'll leave you to answer those questions for yourself because... you see... my only obligation or responsibility here is to make sure you get the facts... your answers are your own... I'll be happy either way.