Blame Game: Shifting Responsibility
Blame game is one of the world’s oldest games. It is played worldwide and in every spoken dialect. Blame has been around since biblical times. In fact Adam and Eve used and played the original blame game in the Garden of Eden. Eve blamed the snake for the apple, while Adam blamed Eve for making him eat it and God for giving him Eve.
There are many other Bible stories where blaming was used extensively. Are we great at the blame game because it is innate, or do we learn it well from a very young age? Children learn to blame primarily by copying parental behavior. As parents, we often fail to realize how this strategy is incorporated into much of our daily life. We try to teach our kids to be responsible, yet they hear us blaming our friends, neighbors and strangers for all kinds of things on a daily basis; we set the example. Sibling blaming is responsible for much of sibling rivalry, and later in life this transitions to peer pressure.
Once we learn the techniques to use on family, friends and spouses, we integrate these same principles and rules at work with coworkers and bosses. Nothing and no one are off limits; the teacher blame game is played by students, while the student blame game is enjoyed by teachers. Blame Game the book describes the history and rules of the game (including how, when and why to blame), but more importantly the book describes the problems with the game and how to go about quitting to improve your happiness and success.
Want to learn more about how and why you shift responsibility to others? Read The Blame Game.
