Starting a startup did wonders for me in terms of taking responsibility for my own state of being, regardless of who else was involved or what they did. I’m not

Starting a startup did wonders for me in terms of taking responsibility for my own state of being, regardless of who else was involved or what they did. I’m not entirely sure where I got it from. I had started thinking that way somewhat, but I also started reading some ‘how to be a founder’ type material at the time that suggests leveling up your responsibility. Either way, I adopted a stance that when bad things happen, even if someone intentionally does something to harm me, it’s still my fault because I put myself in the situation. I decided I would take full responsibility for the state of the company no matter what. The helpful part of that isn’t so much that I accept blame, the most helpful part is that it empowers me to always do something about it. Accepting blame is tangibly helpful though in confrontations and communications. I don’t know if “we” deal with this, it might be something where you can only practice yourself, and model such behavior for others. At some level, deflection and blame is part of the human nature of fear, but you can reject that within your own sphere at least. The key to getting it to catch on might be to demonstrate the value and personal benefits of this mentality to others, and also to reject blame narratives with a very compassionate and forgiving touch. Being aggressive about telling someone what not to do, e.g. smacking someone else in the head, rarely ever works. The head smack that works is the one that comes from within, and might only stick when surrounded by people you trust.