Responsibility is often seen as a burden—a duty, a weight we carry. But over time, I’ve come to understand it quite differently.
To me, responsibility is a presence, a way of being. It’s how we show up, how we make decisions, and how we take ownership of their consequences—even the ones we didn’t anticipate.
It’s not just a value; it’s a discipline.
In business, responsibility appears everywhere: in what we say, what we choose to ignore, how fast we move… or how long we are willing to pause. When I became a mother in 2008, I encountered a form of absolute responsibility. But it was through my professional journey that this presence took on new dimensions—when I closed my first company and launched a second one shortly after, when I joined my first board in 2019 and saw how a single question, calmly asked, could redirect an entire strategy.
“Responsibility isn’t about control; it’s about coherence.”
Responsibility isn’t about control; it’s about coherence. Am I aligned with what I expect from others?
Will the decisions I support today still make sense in five years’ time?
As a founder, I’ve learned how much my presence—not just my choices—affects outcomes. As a board member, I know that the way I engage has an impact far beyond my voice.
And in my personal life, I find the same call for responsibility: in how I listen, speak, adjust, and manage my own emotional state. Whether we intend to or not, we create the atmosphere around us.
And yet, here lies the paradox: I’m someone who moves fast. Always have. I think quickly, decide quickly, act quickly. So learning to slow down has been a daily effort. But I’ve come to realize that slowness transforms the experience of responsibility. I don’t just make a decision—I stand inside it.
The leaders I admire most aren’t necessarily the most efficient; they’re the most intentional. They pause. They ask better questions. They resist the pressure to act too soon. They don’t let urgency override what truly matters.
The pause is underrated. It creates space. It softens reactivity. It invites a more grounded response.
We talk a lot about data, frameworks, and KPIs—and of course, they matter. But beneath all that lies something else: our inner calibration. The ability to stay present in complexity. To hold discomfort. To avoid premature simplification.
Perhaps that’s where true responsibility lives—not in perfect decisions, but in the quiet discipline of responding, rather than reacting, with clarity, integrity, and care.
It doesn’t shout. But it builds. It aligns. It lasts.
This article was published in the 5th edition of Forbes Luxembourg magazine.
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