Welcome back!
Once you’ve established a healthy culture, guard it like a sentry at the gate. Do not allow poison in any form to ever flow through the system. If you detect it, eliminate it. You are not doing anyone any good if you are not holding people accountable in this critical area. The culture is for the benefit of all, from the janitor to the CEO, to the stakeholders and the customers. A healthy culture requires active tending. Do not allow dysfunctional undercurrents to develop in your organization, they quickly turn to poison that contaminates everything it comes into contact with.
If you truly want to be an awesome leader, this is where the journey is won or lost for you. You either create a healthy culture and enjoy tremendous success, or you cause or allow a toxic culture and suffer through squalid conditions. It doesn’t matter how bold your vision, how sound your values, how inspiring your mission, or how elegant your strategic plan. If you don’t get the culture piece of the equation right, you have failed.
Next time, we’ll begin taking a look at the role leaders play in the community outside their organization. Until then, keep being awesome!