Remember Road House? Three great culture rules from Dalton himself!
Culture is a trendy topic. And it should be! Businesses today will succeed or fail not based upon the best tech or the coolest product...but on the shoulders of its' people. The best people aren't attracted to just a paycheck or 'fun' benefits...but also attracted to a positive culture.
Whether you work in a startup or a Fortune 500 company, there are three simple culture rules that will ensure you attract and retain the best talent.
Assume Good Intent
This one trips a lot of people up. We read 'tone' in emails that isn't really there. We take questions personally even though the person asking was truly 'just asking.' Someone is always out to get us; someone always has an agenda.
It's exhausting to live that way. To work that way. So why don't we just assume good intent? Because we've never viewed this as an internal problem. We've jumped job-to-job, company-to-company and 'discovered' people out to get us; we never took a moment to think "hmm, maybe it's me? Maybe it's how I am viewing the situation?"
Think of it this way: if you always go out looking for a fight, you'll eventually find one.
Act Like An Adult
Such a simple rule and one that is ignored the most. I think part of the reason is that many people never learned what it is to actually be an adult. How many times in a day do you hear 'sorry, not my job?' My nine year old son says that.
Even worse, I've heard people on the phone with customers saying "that was so-and-so's fault. Not sure what they were thinking." I spent over a decade in client services and I can tell you that my most powerful tool was taking responsibility, even if it wasn't actually my fault! "Sorry, Bob, that was my miss. You have my apologies. First, what can I do to help clean this up? Second, let me give you some ideas for a plan moving forward." I have a stack of emails I saved from clients who were grateful for that approach. One even saying "now that you're involved, I know this will be fixed." Powerful.
What would you rather have: a client that walks away, but hey at least they know it wasn't your fault! Or a client that accepted your apology and is still a client? We let so much of our own ego and pride get in the way of doing what's right.
Dalton's Rule #3: Be Nice
Roadhouse was a great '80s movie! Patrick Swazye plays a zen-like bouncer that rescues bars from constant fights. He has a few rules for his bouncers to follow and Rule #3 is 'be nice.' It's sad thinking about the number of people I've run in to that simply cannot follow this rule. It costs nothing to be nice. Nothing. But the ROI is often immeasurable.
People are what makes a company rise or fall. If time and energy are spent on negative, internal problems you won't be able to focus on the external problems and opportunities. Your company, no matter how great the product/service, will fail. Adopt these rules. Remove egos from the equation and watch how much smoother things operate!
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