In 5 Words, Kansas City Tight End, and Taylor Swift Boyfriend, Travis Kelce Just Taught a Powerful Lesson About Leadership…See More Details 👇

Last week, the Kansas City Chiefs won against their rivals the Cincinnati Bengals by only one point. Though the Chiefs are 2 and 0 so far this season, they aren’t happy about how they got there. In both cases, they squeaked out a win partly thanks to a late-in-the-game penalty call against their opponents.

Predictably, that’s led to complaints on social media that NFL refs are biased in favor of the three-time Super Bowl-winning Chiefs. But rather than react with anger or lash out at the Chiefs’ critics, on the latest episode of the New Heights podcast, veteran tight end Travis Kelce put the blame where the best leaders do: squarely on himself. Noting that “you can’t put it in the ref’s hands that late in the game,” he praised the Chiefs’ defensive players for doing a great job and said that the offense needed to do better, beginning with himself. “I put that on me,” he said. “You know, I think it starts with the leaders. It starts with making sure you’re going with the right mentality. I didn’t play my best. It spreads if you don’t fix it, so I got to get that thing fixed, man.”

I put that on me. How often have you heard leaders take responsibility so simply and directly when things went wrong? It doesn’t happen as often as it should. Kelce, who’s perhaps best known for his ongoing relationship with Taylor Swift, is exactly right that a leader’s mentality can affect that of the whole group. If indeed his mentality is a drain on the team, the sooner he does something about it, the better.

That applies not only to Kelce, but to every leader in every situation. Entrepreneurs and other business leaders don’t always recognize how much their own moods and thought processes, and whether they’re at the top of their game or not, will affect the people who work with them. The fact that Kelce does recognize it and acknowledges it is a big step in the right direction. So is the fact that he knows he needs to do something about it. Both statements bode well for the Chiefs this season as they seek to become the first NFL team ever to win three Super Bowls in a row. This kind of self-awareness can be a powerful asset for you too, as a leader and for your whole organization.