CHANGE CULTURE ONE DAY AT A TIME
There's been a lot written about over the years on the power of positive thinking and how changing your thoughts lead to different outcomes. Most of this research focuses on changing individual thoughts that lead to peak individual performance.
What about organizations? Does this same concept apply to them?
Absolutely!
If you "walk the halls" of organizations today you will find a lot of cultures that exude negativity in conversations both formal and informal. They may have plaques on the walls bestowing its values and these written values are supposed to drive the culture but the REAL culture is what you see, hear or feel:
in meetings
in team interactions
in phone calls and emails
in observing what behaviors are rewarded and penalized
at one on one discussions at the coffee pot
in performance reviews
If negative thoughts permeate day to day interaction, it only make sense that the culture becomes negative or unproductive over time leading to poor outcomes.
This situation needs a lot of attention and that attention has to start with the leader. One of the most important roles of a leader is to create and nurture a culture that enables the organization to deliver its desired outcomes.
You might say, "It is hard enough to change individual thoughts so how can we as an organization?" My short answer is, "Take one day at a time."
Your organization's culture didn't develop overnight and it won't change overnight. It's the discipline of creating new thought patterns on a daily basis and over time, the culture will start to change.
Consider the following as a brief example of a "what if" approach to changing the culture one day at a time.
What if the first thing every employee saw on their computer screen every day before they started work was:
Today, I will:
Act With Integrity
Respect Others
Seek Solutions
Imagine every meeting starting with those three bullet points to set the tone for the meeting. Imagine leaders giving all employees the permission to call out other employees, regardless of title, if they violate any of the bullet points.
What if the CEO and the other senior leaders committed to saying every day:
Today, I will:
Inspire Others
Create Positive Environments
Drive the Vision & Strategy
What if every manager committed to saying every day:
Today, I will:
Help My Staff Be Successful
Be Approachable
Move Closer to Achieving Our Goals
What if every individual contributor committed to saying every day:
Today, I will:
Work Hard on my Assigned Duties
Support my Teammates
Deliver Quality Work
Changing culture is a "one day at a time" mindset that requires intentional thoughts, discipline and repetition and it has to be led from the top. There are obviously more touch points around people, process and structure to drive culture change but you have to start somewhere and changing thought patterns is a critical first step.
Reprogram your organization's thought processes so:
New Thoughts > New Beliefs > New Behaviors > Different Actions > Different Results