The Culture+ Blog

I'm a bit torn. I read a statistic today that only 24% of employees believe their managers show up to their 1:1 meetings well-prepared. The other 76%? "Somewhat prepared," "not prepared," or "not prepared at all." The article also said there should be a clear agenda...

Tactics are lipstick. The internet is full of leadership tactics. I have a quiver full of tactics if someone wants it. Anything from hiring, firing, vision casting, team communications, etc. But a tactic that overlays something that is fundamentally broken won't get...

I overheard the conversation while waiting in line. Somebody who gave me the impression they were the tire manager at a local Costco was talking to a tire worker. I was trying my best to politely eavesdrop. I could tell it was a tense conversation. The tire manager...

Who is your customer? Hint: The customer isn't always the one directly paying you. If you are in customer service then your customer is likely whoever is calling you with problems. Usually these people are also your organization's clients - the ones that pay you. Easy...

Trust it. We all get that gut instinct when we are communicating something to a team member and they are saying they get it, but you know they just aren't getting it. Or, they are agreeing with you but you know they have some unexpressed reservations. On a podcast I...

Nothing of significance can happen without the aid of other people. Part of me is getting exhausted with founders, CEOs, politicians, celebrities, and others who get spotlight attention on their work. Sometimes it feels like we are a bit too starstruck. Great, you...

Whenever I have been stuck (and I am stuck right now, hence this post), it's because there is something, or multiple somethings, that I don't know how to do. Invariably when stuck-ness happens, I am moving along whatever path just fine, then at some point I run into a...

Leaders read between the lines. I always hated that saying, "reading between the lines." It reminds of when a local news station here in Seattle decided to do "news out of the box" and had their anchors wandering around the studio delivering the news instead of...

Words matter. The cliche is that talk is cheap. Action is what matters! And, to some extent, those who believe this have a point. Actions do matter. What I believe, though, is that no action can arise without the preceding thought. Thoughts that consist of words. The...

A required skill in the future workplace (defined as every workplace from tomorrow on) is the ability to think. Not trying to be condescending here, and I am not suggesting that we aren't doing some version of thinking right now. I am talking about a different kind of...

How much we are paid is a signal. The Seahawks just resigned our quarterback, Russell Wilson, to a 4-year $140 million contract making him the highest paid player in the National Football League. Now, for you and me, this is a huge amount of money to be paid for a...

Yesterday I mentioned a little phrase that Tiger Woods made during an interview after his victory at The Masters. In the middle of a longer reply he offered us this bit of gold, "I applied what I learned." If you have ever applied what you have learned, then you...