2.2 302 What if you stopped doing one wrong thing?
Nick Saban 5. "The expectations are what they are here, and we don't run around talking about them."
Forget slogans and posters. Forget mission statements. Forget culture decks. Culture is partly what you encourage, but culture is mostly what you permit. What you accept. What you allow. What you let people get away with. What you, as a business owner or leader, let yourself get away with.
Look the other way when the salesperson who generates a disproportionate share of revenue uses his perceived "status" to treat admin staff poorly, and you permit a culture where dignity and respect is no longer a given. Look the other way when people take credit for the ideas -- and sometimes even the work -- of others, and you permit a culture where the ability to manage up becomes a meaningful metric.
Look the other way when the voice highest on the hierarchy "wins" and you permit a culture where the source of opinion matters more than the quality of opinion -- which naturally stifles the creativity, engagement, and inclusion you claim to value.
Take a hard look at the behaviors and values you encourage. Take an even harder look at the behaviors and values you permit.
Because the things you encourage may frame your culture, but the things you permit define your culture.
