Summary: Recognizing What's Below the Line Most of us have heard the phrase "dealing above the line." It's a great reminder to live and work with responsibility and accountability. It's a concept that has application at every stage of our lives whether as children, youth, or as adults. At a time when a great many Americans are living with an entitlement mentality, the idea of living and working responsibly is greatly needed. Too many people think they deserve the best career, the best house, car, or family just for existing. They assume that everything in life should come as quickly and as easily as fast food burgers and credit card financed vacations. Those of us who have been around for a while or have simply been paying attention to how things really work know what lasting success requires. If we do a better job of teaching and living the principles of responsibility and accountability, we tend to thrive. When we don't, we tend to dive. Dr. Edwards Deming is known for his work in transforming Japan's manufacturing industries to the high level of quality for which they are renowned. In teaching quality, Dr. Deming would draw an imaginary line point out, that many people in the world choose to deal below the line in 3 zones. The bottom zone is blame. In this realm, people are always blaming circumstances for their setbacks or failures. It's a victim mentality that ultimately holds people back. One rung up on the ladder is the zone of justification. We often see people justifying why they can or cannot do something. It amounts to nothing more than making excuses. This too, impedes our progress. In the next zone, we find shame. This is where people bar themselves from success because they feel inadequate or undeserving. They consider themselves too stupid or too far behind the curve to ever succeed. Dr. Deming taught that when we choose to operate in the zone of blame, justification, or shame, it is all an absolute waste of our time, energy, money, and resources. It's only when we deal above the line that we progress. The Two Dollar Rule All progress begins by telling the truth. And the people we must be perfectly honest with starts with ourselves. That honesty is what enables us to live above the line in the zone of responsibility and accountability. Responsibility means that we respond with all of our God-given faculties and abilities in any situation rather than playing the victim. It was one of Dr. Deming's students named Marshall Thurber who pioneered the use of the "Two Dollar Rule" in his Fortune 500 company. Thurber strategically placed jars throughout the company's office for 90 days. Any time that an employee caught themselves dealing below the line, they had to put two dollars into one of the jars. If they failed to recognize it themselves, a coworker could point out what they were doing and call for the two dollar deposit. At the end of 90 days, the plan was to donate whatever money had been collected in the jars to a charity. Amazingly, at the end of 90 days, they had collected over a quarter of a million dollars and the productivity of that company went through the roof. This two dollar rule can be successfully put to use in any setting including work, home, volunteer efforts, etc. When we learn to recognize those times that we're tempted to deal below the line in blame, justification, or shame, we can make a correction. Getting in the habit of dealing above the line in by shouldering responsibility and accountability puts us on the fast track to real personal progress. Imagine how much more abundant the world could be if more people shed their entitlement mentality and focused on dealing above the line in all areas of their lives. Learn more by visiting with a wealth architect today.
