Month: April 2024

Culture is not something that you need to do separately. It is not merely the reviews written on Glassdoor.

Or superficial gestures like singing Happy Birthday for colleagues.

So what is it?

The Truths That Can Transform Your Culture!..

Culture is an intangible yet powerful aspect of an organization that goes beyond mere surface-level practices. Instead, culture is an intrinsic part of how a company operates, shaped by the collective mindset and values of its employees.

Culture is how you think.
Culture is who you are.
Culture is how you behave in front of your people and how you tell
your people to think.
Culture is whether you choose to lash out on somebody OR whether
you listen to them calmly.
Culture is whether you share feedback publicly or privately or can
do both, thinking about it first.
Culture is whether you cry about policies or you take charge to
highlight it, do something about changing it.

In essence, culture is about fostering an environment where employees are empowered to take ownership and contribute their ideas freely.

The achievements mentioned in this book are not the outcomes of assigned tasks; they are the results of employees’ own ideas and initiatives.

Whether it’s winning prestigious awards like the CODiE and Edison awards, or securing patents, or developing internal tools, these accomplishments were all born from the creativity and enthusiasm of team members who voiced their thoughts and had the determination to see them through.

The crux of this culture lies in the willingness of individuals to embrace their role as proactive contributors, not just passive workers completing assigned tasks.

Such a culture is not something that can be enforced; it must be nurtured and embraced by everyone within the organization.

When employees feel inspired and supported to explore their own initiatives, they become motivated to excel and go beyond the ‘Call Of Duty’!

I can recall a powerful story from my childhood related to this:

When I hit my first six in ‘gully cricket’, nobody applauded me, except my younger brother and that one friend who had also just recently hit the first six of his life! 🙂

It was a big ground for us. We were like 6th-7th graders, playing with the neighborhood guys studying in college. We had been fielding for a long time, sometimes getting an over to bowl, getting caught at the boundary at times.

Clearing the boundary the first time certainly felt special. We were grown-ups now.

Afterwards, we three cheered a lot whenever it happened for anyone else. We thought the celebration would be special for them as well. But while we realized not everyone thinks/feels like us (it ain’t an achievement for all), we could still see the little joy in them as they celebrated.

Now as well I think encouraging people like this and celebrating the little wins is really important. If I’m mentoring someone, I try to relive my journey through them. And what I like is – not everyone thinks alike, so their journey is going to be unique – but there are a few milestones I can make sure they don’t miss celebrating.

Contd…….

Are you ready to immerse yourself in a world of intriguing knowledge and captivating tales? Look no further, our book is waiting for you on Amazon.

An intrapreneur is an employee which is usually assigned to innovative projects that can impact the company’s future success. As such, the intrapreneur is an employee that acts like an entrepreneur within the organization. While the intrapreneur has access to the resources of the organization, he/she does not bear the risks connected to it.
Now, let’s go through a few thoughts to ponder upon before you delve deeper into the thoughts we have shared in the different chapters of this book. Our discussions, suggestions, recommendations will be focused around the thought process reflected in these situations.

If you can relate to these pointers, this book is for you. If you cannot, this is definitely for you.

An intrapreneur is an employee which is usually assigned to innovative projects that can impact the company’s future success. As such, the intrapreneur is an employee that acts like an entrepreneur within the organization. While the intrapreneur has access to the resources of the organization, he/she does not bear the risks connected to it.
Now, let’s go through a few thoughts to ponder upon before you delve deeper into the thoughts we have shared in the different chapters of this book. Our discussions, suggestions, recommendations will be focused around the thought process reflected in these situations.

If you can relate to these pointers, this book is for you. If you cannot, this is definitely for you.

It’s YOU who needs to learn and adapt, not your team members
Let’s say – you are a team lead on paper, but are not able to grow your team. It’s been 5 years, but you still have 4 people, none of them more than a year experienced. What will you say about this situation?

What are the next steps?

Usually the first response people have is – this is not my fault. I have been trying new things each and every time. What can I do if people don’t like the work or the company?

Have you considered the possibility that they are leaving your team and not the company?

Is it possible that they just want to leave you?

What we want to convey is that it is imperative to self-introspect.

The first and foremost step should be to recognize that – could this be your fault? It is very much possible that your team isn’t growing because they are not getting enough opportunities (you are not doing enough!).

OR

Another possibility is that everyone does like you – but not the workplace in general and in this case, they might believe that you are also just stuck here.

What to do in this situation?

‘’Take charge’’.

Talk to your team to know the truth. Talk to other teams that have been able to grow in numbers. Read about how to quickly grow your team.

All these pointers come from what we have understood falls under the “FIRST PRINCIPLE THINKING”. Now – what is first principle thinking? A 2-liner meaning to help you be on the same page: Getting to the root cause of the problem, rather than solving it at a surface level. Once you have got to the root cause, again try to find its root cause. If you are not able to actually get to the depth of it, you can try solving all the challenges you have figured out.

So,

Your people are ‘your team’, not you.

You don’t define your team, ‘your people’ do. Team is what it is,

WHEN YOU ARE NOT THERE.