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Individuals and businesses often choose a focus word for the year.

The major focus for my business this year is “culture.” And while we will go into detail in future articles about the indicators and scorecards you can use to practically identify and measure its effectiveness in your organization, I first wanted to go back to the beginning. At least, this was the beginning for me.

In the Beginning

This goes back to my early days in the corporate world and to one of my dearest mentors. Let me introduce you to Al.

Whether it was a conscious effort or not, Al managed to create a very unique culture in the company.

It was like a company with the fervent conviction of a religious sect mixed with all the bustle and trimmings of a large Italian family event. And like an Italian family patriarch (even though he was not), Al managed to form a team that could both vociferously disagree internally at times and yet fight as one against any competitive odds.

Mottos like, “Work hard, play hard, no surprises,” and “Tee it up!” became legendary.

And when the work was done, there was celebration and breaking of bread together.

When the company established a new facility, it was an extended family affair – employees and their families were all taken on a tour of the new addition, and everyone was proud to have a part in it.

In the early days, Al spun the culture around “The Three Keys to Company Success: Great Service, Great Marketing, and a Great Team.”

That simple mantra was told and retold around the world as each new team began. It was woven into the tapestry of the culture.

Al’s unspoken lesson on culture was this: it doesn’t have to be complicated or perfect.

Companies go to enormous lengths to create the “perfect” culture based on complex paradigms developed by others. Al created his own flavor. It was simple. It was uniquely odd and beyond the norms.

And…it worked.

It really worked.

How can you create your own unique company culture?

While Al certainly didn’t follow a formula, there are underlying principles that support strong culture in any organization. Here are some of those principles.

1. Be Like Family

When it comes to relationships, familial relationships are those which last a lifetime. Neighbors and acquaintances come and go. But family, with all its goodness and faults, is for life. You work together, play together, eat together. You know each other’s faults. You may squabble amongst yourselves. But let an outside challenge come near the perimeter, and you are one formidable force.

Foster a family environment, and you create a culture of commitment.

2. Work Hard

People are most content when they are working to accomplish a meaningful goal. You see this on full display when the chips are down and deadlines loom. The team dynamic surfaces to the top and team members work shoulder-to-shoulder to carry the load. Seldom do you hear rumblings and disgruntlement at these times. You do hear such things when the work is slow or when people do not feel like they are contributing to the cause. Boredom leads to discontent.

Keep your team engaged, and you create a culture of contentment.

3. Have Fun and Celebrate Success

You are going to spend decades working. You may as well make it fun. Some leaders have the mistaken idea that, in order to be productive, work must be serious. If co-workers are laughing together in the workplace, for example, these leaders see this as wasted time. Unless it is a perpetual problem that really does impact productivity, the congeniality of shared stories, experiences, and laughter in the workplace is a sign of many things, and they are all good. It is a sign of team bonding, engagement in the work, enjoyment of the work, and life in the workplace. Laughter is good medicine. It sparks not only bonding but creativity and innovation. You can be a leader who sends the message that “work is no fun,” or you can be a leader who makes work fun and rewarding. As an employee, which leader would you rather work for?

Have fun and celebrate success, and you create a culture of collaboration and creativity.

4. Focus on the Business of People

No matter what type of business you are in, at some level, your business is about people. It is the people you work with, customers, vendors, and community. It is about mentors and mentees learning, growing, and developing together in order to serve others. If you create a team centered on great service to people at all levels, you will have an unimaginable success.

Center your business on service to people, and you create a culture of community.

5. Build Your People

Each person in your organization plays a critical role. They fill a need; otherwise, you would not have hired them. But your responsibility as a leader does not stop at the hiring point. In fact, that is only the beginning. One of your greatest – and frankly, most rewarding – roles is to take those entrusted to your care and help them become the best they can be. It is to see not only who and what they are, but who and what they can be, just as you see ahead of the curve in business. When you invest in a future leader, you are investing in your entire organization, and very often in your own legacy. This focus on growing employees within the business has been lost in recent decades, and Al would say it is time to get it back. I am grateful that Al chose to invest in his people because I was one of them. Who are you investing in today?

Center your business on building your people, and you create a culture of competence.

Deb Ingino is a highly sought-after executive coach, mentor, consultant, and speaker worldwide. Deb is well versed in business operations and in the importance of asking key questions most business leaders won’t ask themselves. She brings deep experience in leadership development, strategy, high performance team building and effective communication. She has a passion for leading people to discover and maximize their strengths as well as those of fellow team members, while offering advanced strategies to achieve high performance. Deb is the perfect fit if you’re ready to take your leadership and impact to the next level!