Core Values: Total Accountability

Kathleen Wilson, a Resident Advisor at Anna Ogden Hall, chose three of UGM's core values and wrote a short essay that untangles the meaning and depth behind each value. How does this reflection personally challenge you? Stay tuned for Kathleen's other two essays on Life Transformation and Unified Teamwork.

UGM Core Value #3 - Total Accountability 

Accountability is the “state of being accountable, liable, or answerable.” Accountable means “subject to the obligation to report, explain, or justify something; responsible.” Answerable means “liable to be asked to give an account.” Responsible means “answerable or accountable, as for something within one’s power, control, or management.” Total means “constituting or comprising the whole, entire; complete in extent or degree; absolute; unqualified.”

Total accountability means a person takes complete responsibility for things within his or her power or control. A person who is accountable is entirely obligated to give an answer to justify words, actions, or events that occurred under his or her supervision.

Accountability excludes blaming, side-stepping, lying, or refusal to give a complete and clear account of the reasons for one’s actions, words, failure to comply with rules, lack of participation or delinquency. Clear, honest, humble, straightforward communication is part of the accountability process, along with a willingness to admit mistakes and receive correction and instruction.

People who are accountable take ownership of their behavior and are willing to confess shortcomings. They’re willing to apologize, to receive consequences and follow through with whatever is required to rectify the situation.

Total accountability also requires willingness to submit to authority. This means even when one believes that his or her way of doing things is better than the way the authority wants it done, he or she is willing to do it the way the authority asks without argument.

Humility is required to trust that an authority may know and understand variables that are not at first obvious to the one subject to that authority. Someone who is under authority must trust God to lead, guide, and give wisdom to that authority figure He has put in place.

~ Kathleen Wilson, Resident Advisor, UGM Women's Recovery at Anna Ogden Hall