You’ve defined your Core Values! So why doesn’t your Culture reflect those values? Simple, the values are not ingrained in your Processes. In order to change a culture, behaviors need to become a habit. What defines great championship teams? Answer: their habits which result in a championship culture. How did Michael Phelps earn 23 gold medals? Answer: his culture of discipline and practice behaviors.
This blog is the third of my 3-part series on Process. Remember, Process = Communication + Flow + Culture.
Are you Being Hypocritical?
When I begin a new EOS client, more often than not, they have a list of values that are not lived out in their company. When I facilitate the simple but powerful tool called the People Analyzer where we test these values to see if they’re truly core, I find that 15-30 percent of their values are Aspirational Values. In other words, they want to be known for those values but they, as a leadership team, are not exhibiting them routinely . . . thus, not core and not part of their culture.
When this happens, the core values lose their impact. Some may even say that company is hypocritical since they tout themselves as such but their culture reflects otherwise. That is a quick way to damage your brand with your customers and your employees. This duality makes it hard for managers and team members to make decisions. “Do as I say, not as I do” doesn’t work in parenting and it definitely doesn’t work in business leadership.
Is Culture a Process?
So why do I tie Culture to Process? In a previous post, I wrote, “When we act out of habit from repetitive Flow as a result of clear Communication, then it becomes our Culture.” In order for your core values to be manifested into your culture, it first has to be communicated. Once communicated, the values need to be lived day in and day out. This repetition creates a consistent Flow. When the Flow is consistent over a period of time where it becomes automatic, then it becomes your Culture.
There are several books that stress the importance of habit. Your habits (consistent Flow) define your culture. Charles Duhigg, author of The Power of Habit, wrote, ““Habits are powerful, but delicate. They can emerge outside our consciousness, or can be deliberately designed. They often occur without our permission, but can be reshaped by fiddling with their parts. They shape our lives far more than we realize—they are so strong, in fact, that they cause our brains to cling to them at the exclusion of all else, including common sense.” Tying back to my Michael Phelps reference, I quote Duhigg, “Champions don’t do extraordinary things. They do ordinary things, but they do them without thinking, too fast for the other team to react. They follow the habits they’ve learned.” Michael has powerful training habits that make him extraordinary, to the point that his swim strokes are thoughtless and much faster than others.
Daniel Coyle, author of The Little Book of Talent, wrote, ““Practice doesn’t make perfect. Practice makes myelin, and myelin makes perfect.” He’s referring to research that myelin is produced when we practice. Myelin is the fatty white substance that insulates nerve fibers which increases the speed at which impulses are conducted. Evidence from brain scans of expert musicians suggest that the estimated amount of practice was correlated to the density of their myelin matter. Myelin is key in creating automatic impulses . . . habits. So create a habit of living out your core values by using them and reflecting them every day. In order to perpetuate your core values, you must emphasize them during the hiring process, the firing process, the review process, and when you’re communicating any procedural processes or expectations. In other words, you have to refer to them every day in all your processes! Referring to them every day creates the myelin in your organization to speed up communication. The increased speed in communication of your core values creates continuous flow of information and connections throughout your organization, thus creating the culture that you desire.
Olympic Class Business!
Imagine your company with clearly defined Core Values. Then imagine those Core Values lived out consistently throughout the organization in all of your work”Flow” and daily behaviors. When that happens, you have a strong Process component of your business . . . producing a championship team culture! With a championship team, you would be invited to Olympic-sized opportunities for your business. You take gold and best in class in your business events/services! Cue the national anthem!
So if you’re asking yourself, “why don’t I have the culture I want for my company?” Are you clearly communicating your Core Values? Is your leadership team leading by example in how they behave every day in everything they do? Are the Core Values ingrained in how you do things to the point that it’s a habit?
If not, then you’ll continue to have Aspirational Values and could be seen as hypocritical by living a dual life. Make a change today and create a habit that’s consistent with your Core Values for the Culture you want!
“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” – Aristotle
Take the Organizational Checkup to gauge the health of your company! For more information on creating a healthy business lifestyle, read about the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS).
My next blog will illustrate examples of Business System Truth (BST) #3. Without Process, People are not deployed through the Infrastructure!
To Your Business Health!