We weren’t in the car for more than ten minutes and already the day was getting off to a bad start. The VP of Sales, who was riding along with me for the day, wasted no time grilling me about my poor sales performance.

Immediately I went on the defensive. No matter how much confidence I had in my talent, I firmly felt that the territory I covered was so bad that it was my biggest obstacle to becoming a perennial sales performer. I reiterated what was told to me by my hiring manager that the Los Angeles territory was one of the worst in the nation. It had always been that way and would remain that way. In addition to the bad territory, I felt there was a lack of support and guidance from my manager, which was also hindering my progress.

Of course the VP of Sales saw the situation completely different. He was steadfast in his belief that the problem was me. “Ja Marr, let me ask you something”, the VP of Sales said. “No matter how you try and pass the buck, at the end of the day, when it comes to your performance whose responsibility is it?”

I knew what he was trying to do, but I was not about to give in. In my mind, he was trying to get me to admit that the poor sales performance was all my fault and that would give him enough HR ammo to fire me. So as to outsmart him, and not dig my own grave, I was stubbornly persistent and continued to present my version of the truth. I repeated my earlier answers about how bad the territory is and lack of support. To his credit, the VP of Sales was not about to give in either.

He narrowed his focus on me and with a stern, yet measured tone and stated, “It’s your responsibility. Nobody else’s but yours. Everything that happens, in your territory, good or bad – is your responsibility. You have talent but you have failed miserably at taking ownership and owing up to your responsibility. Until you do you will not be successful here or any other company you work at.”

Our debate ended right there. Not because I immediately understood his point, but because I had nothing left to defend myself. For the next thirty minutes we drove to the first appointment in total silence. I opened up my mind and allowed for his words to percolate. Something about the line “you will not be successful here or anywhere” resonated. My perception of what was actually possible in my territory and the meaning behind taking ownership and responsibility started to actually sink in.

We pulled up to the office of our first physician. Before we got out of the car the VP of Sales turned to me once again and asked, “So who’s responsibility is it?”

I replied confidently, “It’s my responsibility.” For the first time in my career I understood what this meant. A clear sense of relief came over me.

The VP of Sales recognized the importance of this and said, “Good. Now I can teach you how to improve your sales results.”

Without the burden of anger, resentment or frustration hanging over me, I walked toward the physician’s office with a sense of relief. A major turn in my career had taken place.

For the first time in my career, I took full responsibility for my results. I realized that all of the time I spent blaming others could have been spent trying to improve myself and learning how to be successful.

Were there uncontrollable challenges in my territory? Yes. But was I helping or hurting the situation? I realized that I was actually hurting the situation by contributing to the problems with my poor attitude as opposed to finding solutions and focusing on what I could control.

Did the gripe sessions I had with other salespeople in the company help or hurt my situation? We all have a choice when faced with adversity in sales, and that choice is to change your attitude or change your address. I decided to change my attitude and it was one of the single most contributing factors to my success. And, as I continued to learn from and study perennial top performers, I found out that it was theirs as well.

Consider the answer to the following question:

Have you ducked responsibility in your career?

If so, make a comment to this post and describe the moment where you came to the realization that your performance was your responsibility.

Who or what played a role in you realizing the importance of taking responsibility and ownership with your performance?

If you have not fully taken responsibility yet what can you do, starting today, to take ownership and put yourself on a path towards perennial sales success?