Culture, Profit, & Balance

Posted on by johnlwheaton1

On Companies, culture, profit, and balance:

Emphasis only on Culture without caring about profit is called a party

Emphasis only on profit without caring about culture is called drudgery.

Neither model has long-term value to those inside or outside.

A good culture with a sustainable profit is a thing of beauty.

And good (or great) cultures should generate value and produce a profit.  Profit is not a dirty word. Without a profit, companies can not invest in their people, their community, and in “looking around the corner” to continue to innovate, grow, create opportunity, & produce value. Between the extremes, there is a balance. A sustainable space. Creating and sustaining a positive culture / community and sustaining profitability are not mutually exclusive. Both should be sought. There should be balance.

Where does your organization lie on the continuum? What influence can you have to shift to “better”?

Statement vs. Action

Posted on by johnlwheaton1

Instead of stating the obvious, or simply stating the emotion, state the action required or resolution instead (or in addition to.) You’ll save a lot of energy.

Replace “Man, I’m tired” with

“I’m going to sleep now”

Replace “I’m overwhelmed” with

“Can you help me review my priorities?”

Replace “I hate my diet” with

“I’m going to cut out sugar starting immediately”

We waste a lot of energy communicating our needs, frustrations, and anger. There’s a place for venting and emoting, but then if we don’t want to be stuck we’ve got to move on. We’ve got to act. Better yet, move straight to the action.