On my desk, I have a tiny piece of paper with a quote that I ripped out of a piece of mail.

The words, a popular saying attributed to Henry Ford, are, “Don’t find fault. Find a remedy.”

The first part of this quote references an issue we are all aware — and guilty — of. It is our nature as human beings to point the blame. There is not a person on this planet who has not at some point, when confronted with, “why did this happen?” responded with, “because he did…” or “well she did…”

Sure, some of us are better at owning up to mistakes than others (we all know that one person who consistently takes the fall), but without fail, even the humblest person will point the finger at some point or another.

I can’t speak for Henry Ford, but I think when he said these words, his intent was more than an encouragement for people to take accountability for their actions. I think too often people spend time focusing on the problem and why it happened, instead of working toward finding a solution.

Of course, part of finding a solution is discovering what went wrong, but much more of resolving issues is figuring out what can be done differently, or as Ford put it, finding a remedy. The more time we spend discussing who did what, the longer it takes to correct the problem and move forward.

All too often in the media, we see people berating others — be it politicians, fellow community members, coworkers, etc. — for their mistakes and poor decisions. Of course it is important for Americans to exercise their right to hold people accountable for their actions. Having the ability to air our grievances is part of what makes this country so great. At what point, though, does it become redundant to continuously point out the problem instead of focusing on a way to fix it?

On Tuesday, voters will be presented with a number of issues, which, depending on your voting district, could include school bond proposals, a tax hike to improve Michigan roads or a recall election.

While investigating these issues to form your opinion before heading to the polls, it can be easy to attack the circumstances or people and decisions that led officials to have to create these proposals. For example, if funds had been allocated differently in the state, there would be more money to invest in roads. If the school system hadn’t invested so much money in X, there may have been more money to spend on building improvements.

The fact of the matter is, though, those decisions are in the past. What is done is done, and in most cases, the officials who currently hold seats are left to clean up the “messes” their predecessors left behind. The proposals on the ballot are the solutions the elected officials have agreed upon, and now it is your turn to decide if the solutions they have come up with are adequate answers to the problems.

When casting your votes May 5, I urge you to focus not on the fault, but on the remedy.

 

Ambrosia Neldon is the managing editor at Leader Publications. She can be reached by phone at (269) 687-7713, or by email at ambrosia.neldon@leaderpub.com.