We’ve all been a part of the conversation. Something isn’t working, a challenge surfaces, or an opportunity is missed. Someone points it out, others chime in, and before long, the conversation is centered on everything that’s wrong and why it won’t work. Someone needs to fix it.
These conversations are necessary in organizations. We need team members who are willing to speak up, ask hard questions, recognize risks, and challenge the status quo. Identifying challenges is an important part of making things better.
But, what happens after the challenge has been identified?
Do we simply pass it along and wait for someone else to figure it out? Do we leave the conversation with a list of obstacles but no ideas to move it forward? Or, do we take the next step and consider how we might best contribute?
Identifying a challenge is valuable. Taking ownership of what happens next is leadership.
Being solution-oriented doesn’t mean having all the answers or solving everything on your own. It means approaching challenges with curiosity, initiative, and a willingness to contribute.
It’s making the shift -
From “Here’s the problem” to “Here’s what I’ve considered.”
From “Someone needs to fix this” to “Here’s how I can help”
From “This won’t work” to “What would it take for this to work?”
Ownership means doing some of the thinking before handing off the problem. It means bringing perspective and possible solutions.
We don't have to own every problem, but we should own our contribution to moving it forward.
With our Profile of a Leader, we commit to Visionary & Courageous Leadership. As we mature from Leading Self to Leading Others and Leading Impact, courage looks like taking ownership of solutions when there are many unknowns. When we bring thoughtful options alongside our challenges, we protect team momentum, foster mutual trust, and develop the judgment needed to lead at any level in the organization. We believe these actions and attitudes are interwoven with, and organizationally foundational to, the Call to Action in our Manifesto - Serve, Lead, Ignite.
A culture of ownership is built when team members at every level take responsibility for their contributions. It shows up in how we lead ourselves, how we work alongside others, and how we look for ways to make our organization better.
Leadership isn’t limited to those with supervisory responsibilities or formal titles. Each of us influences culture through the questions we ask, the ideas we contribute, and the initiative we demonstrate.
So what does this look like in our everyday work?
Consider these the next time you recognize a problem or find yourself in a challenging conversation:
Bring your thinking, not just the problem: Am I contributing to the conversation or simply adding to the list of problems?
Offer possibilities, not just objections: Have I considered possible solutions before passing the issue along?
Be a part of the follow-through: Am I willing to be a part of the work required to make things better?
The challenge isn’t to stop raising concerns. It’s to take the next steps.
The culture we want to create isn’t built by people who simply recognize what needs to change. It’s built by people who are willing to help change it.
