Excuses are not reasons
The distinction that defines how others see you
Most people think they give reasons. They give excuses.
The difference isn’t the event. It’s what follows.
Excuse: “The customer didn’t reply, so I couldn’t finish.” Reason: “The customer didn’t reply. I sent reminders and drafted a fallback plan.”
Same situation. Completely different signal.
Excuses stop at why it failed. Reasons add what you did and what changes next time.
One test cuts through it: does this explanation help prevent the same problem next time? Yes = reason. No = excuse.
Leaders don’t judge by incident. They judge by pattern. One missed deadline is noise. A consistent stream of closed-door explanations becomes a reputation.
Everyone hits blockers. People who earn trust stay in the problem even after they’ve named it.
Ownership plus next step. That’s the line.