The Importance Of A Leader's Actions And How Those Actions Shape A Culture

Yeah But …

I found myself in an interesting conversation the other day and it got me thinking about culture and a quote I had recently read. The quote highlighted the importance of a leaders actions and how those actions shape a culture.

“The culture of any organization is shaped by the worst behavior the leader is willing to tolerate.”

As a coach and mentor, there are two very different types of people I lead. Those who build our culture, and those who tear it down. Those who are accountable and those who place blame elsewhere.  My role as a leader is to shape our culture and encourage the types of behaviors that we want more of and ignore the others. I can’t do this if I’m not clear on what we value and if I don't understand what our team stands for.

In a recent coaching session, the phrase, “yeah but” was being tossed around with little thought while long explanations about why their failure was the fault of somebody else was freely being shared.  This isn't our norm and certainly isn't who we are or want to be.  Our team culture is BIG on accountability.  We work to help move people from the above type of communication to self reflection that leads to action to help them reach their goals.

Here are a few of the things to consider when you’re creating your culture. As the leader you get to create the culture you want to be surrounded by.

Victim culture:

• Blames

• Makes excuses

• Complains

• Deflects

• Competes

Accountable culture:

• Takes responsibility

• Owns actions and behaviors

• Strives to be better today than they were yesterday

• Lifts and encourages one another

What kind of culture are you surrounded by? What kind of culture are you tolerating?  What kind of culture are you creating with your actions, words, and behaviors?
As with everything in life, your words and behaviors matter. Choose to be a victim, or choose to create an accountable, abundant and servant attitude. The choice is yours.