Q: how to get your password on a mac

You can't. The passwords are not stored in plain text anywhere and the encryption is one way only.

You will need to use an Account with sys admin privileges to reset  the password. If you don;t have another sys admin account see: If you forget your administrator password

See this Apple note: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1274

There's a reason a password can not be retrieved - if it were retrievable, it would serve no purpose.