Leadership and Organizational Culture

“I wish my employees had more passion for their job”. “Everyone around here is so negative and pessimistic”. “Why doesn’t the younger generation have more work ethic?” “Why can’t older folks be more open to change?”

Have you heard comments like these lately? Have similar statements come from your mouth? If you are an organizational leader this article is for you.

Leadership is influence. You can reverse pessimism, inspire passion, infuse work ethic, and lead proactive change. You first must become the change you want to see in others. It begins with who you choose to be, how you choose to respond, and then, from that place of integrity, what you require. If you are the business owner, the circle of your influence includes the whole business and every team member. What do you require from your people? What are your rules of the game; your non-negotiable core values? What is your culture?

The leader proactively creates or passively allows the team culture. Your team is a mirror; a reflection of you and your leadership. If you look around you and don’t like what you see, change yourself first. You display passion. You choose optimism. You work diligently and responsibly. You embrace your role as leader, and love change. And then you call on your team to follow you. If you are the real deal, then those who are truly on the team will rise up and follow. Those who are not on the team will leave.

Create your culture. Live your culture. Preach your culture. Let the culture be the heavy. Clearly stated non-negotiable core values are key to winning. Then people can choose to play by the rules or leave. Creating a strong culture is the responsibility of the leader.