Here are a couple of ideas on how you can create, and more importantly, manifest as well as reinforce your (company) culture (a topic we have been digging in for a while now):
- Tell (and retell) stories. Humans are hardwired to convey information through stories β going back all the way to us huddling around a fire. Interestingly we use stories in our outside communication (and call it marketing & PR) but often donβt use it all that much inside of our business. By retelling your founding or hero stories, emphasizing the behaviors you care about, you create cohesion and a shared memory across your company.
- Create rituals. Repetition creates muscle memory which becomes a shortcut for our behaviors particularly when we are under stress. It also reinforces the values and practices we want to see in our organizations. Rituals can be anything from ringing a bell when you made a sale to the way you run your weekly all-hands.
- Make artifacts. Physical objects (anything from a printed out customer email to a prototype we made in our design process) are a powerful way to express and reinforce what is important. Showcasing what is essential to you and your organization in places your people can see on a daily basis is a powerful reminder.
As simple as these three things sound, they are incredibly powerful creators and reinforcers of culture. Done purposefully they form the vessels through which you express your culture.