Trust and accountability go hand in hand—especially in leadership. Whether it’s a childhood mistake, a tempting shortcut, or a pivotal decision, how we handle our actions defines who we are. In this week’s blog, Brett Morris shares personal stories and insights on why practicing blameless problem solving isn’t just about fixing issues—it’s about building trust, starting with yourself.

The true power of accountability lies in recognizing that the moment we become aware of it, we are at the center of our universe. In more practical terms, anything that happens in “my world” is something I have some accountability for. At the very least, I am accountable for how I choose to respond.

Every time I find myself in an obsessive pattern of bettering myself, I am quite literally the most miserable version of myself.

Are my objectives ambitious yet attainable? Am I equipped with the necessary resources and support to make them a reality?

I've personally found this exercise to be an invaluable tool. It has prevented me from making impulsive and regrettable communication choices when I've been in a reactive state.

The beauty of accountability lies in its contagious nature.

“People do not care how much you know until they know how much you care.” This is a favorite quote from Teddy Roosevelt, one which embodies everything I believe about coaching. Executive leadership coaches…

If you work in an office environment, you might easily think workplace safety pertains solely to physical safety; your office has no heavy machinery, forklifts, or clearly contagious employees, so it must be safe, right? Not necessarily.

Accountability no longer means responsibility to me. It means total and complete ownership for all that I do…

In 45 years, I have found that most breakdowns in business can be traced to an absence of authenticity…

Stop holding people accountable; it doesn’t work. But leadership coaching is built around accountability, so how can I say it doesn’t work?

Integrity at its core is about respect for others and your community, but primarily for what you hold to be true and important.

It is an opportunity to unlearn, to strip away, to let go of my addiction to knowing things, to stop straining to figure out why things happen. There is freedom in returning to our real purpose.

The biggest mistake is resisting the resistance. It’s natural to resist something that thwarts your intentions, but actually, you just have two opposing forces.

“The only way out is through,” but I ask, “what about when the path through resembles a brick wall?”

Isn’t it great when we’re with people who look past the bad stuff and try to understand what we intend to say? We call those people our friends, our trusted advisors, our coaches. They “get” us, not because they agree, but because they listen.

I’ve never seen the back of my head. Others can see it, but I can’t. With some neck gymnastics and a mirror, I can catch a reversed view of that balding area … but I myself am directly blind to it.

Feedback is vital to our development and growth, both as professionals and in our personal life. But harshly negative feedback, especially from a superior in the workplace, is only rarely effective, and can cause employees to fear speaking up, stop taking chances, spread resentment among others, or find a new job. 

Being a human co-existing with another for any period of time can make it that much more interesting. Have you been with someone long enough to have an epic “fight story” you can tell your friends over wine?