Culture… How is YOURS coming along?
Paul White's nationally distributed syndicated column, “Culture… How is YOURS coming along?” is published in 22 publications across seven states. This includes the following newspapers and digital publications: Midland Daily News (MI), SFGate (CA), Seattle PI (WA), Connecticut Post (CT), Laredo Morning Times (TX), Huron Daily Tribune (MI), The Telegraph (IL), and more. In this week's article, Paul explores what it means to create a culture — work culture, home culture, life culture — and how finding consistent joy and happiness in life comes down to improving your personal culture, and taking it with you every day.
When I first became a business owner, I began to seriously study a wide variety of successful businesses in an effort to unlock strategies that always worked in the process of obtaining consistent positive results.
Along the way, I witnessed similarities that all successful businesses shared. I kept narrowing the list of similarities until one seemed to always find its way to the top. The very best, most efficient, most profitable, most productive companies with the highest percentage of happy, motivated, and caring employees had a well-thought-out, well-developed, and constantly improving CULTURE. Hang with me here. By the end of the article I will prove to you that this directly impacts every person’s life and that YOU control the impact it has on YOUR joy and happiness charts of life.
In our own company I was quick to recognize the positive impact a healthy work culture could have on every single expense line on our Income Statement. In other words, the quickest path to successfully managing expenses is to have a culture that supported each individual employee’s skill sets and, to the best of our moral ability, their emotional and intellectual needs. If that’s too deep of a thought process, I’ll simplify it. Any company experiences the greatest success possible when all the members of its team drive to work excited about what they’ll achieve that day and drive home at the end of their workday knowing they contributed and made a difference in the world.
So how does a company create a healthy culture? One that will have people driving to work excited and grateful to be working for such an outstanding company and driving home feeling so good about their contribution that they want to share their joy and contentment with anyone who will listen?
Many business owners desire a positive culture and understand the benefits that come with it. That said, as I began my quest to find information on developing a winning culture, the available advice and information on the subject became a little overwhelming. Like most business owners, I was interested in the shortest, most direct path to success. It also became evident that if I implemented a strategy and it didn’t work, it could move our culture backwards and have the teammates I care about become cynical with future strategies I might attempt. Ouch!
It became evident that “speed to solution” didn’t matter as much as “getting it right from the start.” Looking back on this period I now realize the mindset change that was occurring within me as I continued my pursuit of a positive culture.
Smack dab in the middle of my research, I had the privilege of having several conversations with Helice “Sparky” Bridges, the author of “Who I Am Makes A Difference.” She explained to me that ALL OF US wake up each day craving three things: Appreciation, Respect, and Love. She explained these shared daily desires in a way that made me realize that it was key to having the people I worked with driving to work excited and driving home fulfilled. While I couldn’t control what happened in each person’s life AWAY from work, I had complete control over everything that impacted them while they were present at our company each workday. My most important goal each day was to ensure that each person I worked with felt totally respected and sincerely appreciated. The third piece, LOVE, was provided naturally by the other two.
Think about it. Who wouldn’t be excited driving to a place where they felt appreciated, respected, and loved? Who wouldn’t drive home feeling fulfilled having been in a positive environment all day where they felt appreciated and respected? Want a real-life example that’s been working for decades? Disney!
Disney doesn’t interview potential employees, they audition them. That’s a subtle but powerful difference. Disney doesn’t hire new employees, they cast them into a specific role. Imagine the excitement of someone coming home to share with their family that they auditioned for a role, and THEY were the one Disney chose to cast in that role.
With my study of companies that experienced great success over a long period of time I realized that each one had created, and then maintained, a culture based on appreciation and respect resulting in people feeling loved at the place they worked each day. I witnessed that each company’s culture was defined by the person at the top of the leadership ladder, in other words, the CEO, President, or owner of the company. THEY THEMSELVES had to live the culture each day. And it wasn’t just at work. They had to be that way as a spouse, as a parent, as a neighbor, as a community member, and as a part of any organization they were involved with. Their actions defined their own PERSONAL CULTURE. While they were appreciating and respecting others, other people were appreciating and respecting them.
Now, I’m headed for a powerful finish here so keep on reading. After years of focusing on providing a positive culture as a business owner, I realized that every human being is in possession of their own personal culture. That culture reveals itself in everything we think, say, and do. Some refer to it as a person’s character, but I feel it’s better defined as your personal culture. Why? Our character is something we rarely invest time analyzing. Using the term “personal culture” feels more manageable.
So, c’mon, ask yourself if other people want to be a part of your personal culture. Why would other people want to be friends with you? Work with you? Be on a committee with you? Follow the same faith you do? Remember, you control every single thing that makes up your personal culture. Are you putting any time into creating the culture that leads you to realizing your dreams?
Want to improve the culture where you work? Improve your personal culture and take it with you every day. Want to improve your family’s culture? Improve your personal culture and live it each moment you spend with the ones you love the most.
If you want to elevate the appreciation, respect, and love that you receive from others in every area of your life from work to home to friends to community….here’s my ask. Will you please embrace the notion that every one of us has a personal culture and that each of us has complete control over? Acknowledge that the personal culture each of us has determines the level of appreciation, respect, and love we have for others and that others have for us.
Accept that we’re all attracted to positive culture whether at work, at home, in friendships, in our community, and with the things we’re involved with AND that self-development of a positive culture is an easy shortcut to consistent joy in life. I’m asking you to think deeply about this and then take immediate action in pursuing improvement in your own personal culture.
Why? Because I want you to experience the benefits of living with a positive culture, especially your own. Plus, I Believe in You!
GiddyUp!
In addition to being a nationally syndicated columnist, Paul White is an author, motivational and inspirational speaker, entrepreneur, podcaster, and life coach located in Midland, Michigan. He offers self-help and culture development to start your journey towards consistent growth and joy. If you’re interested in getting in touch with Paul, please submit an inquiry via our Contact Page.