I believe there are days when a workplace can feel more like an “adult daycare” than an office.

In this first episode, I’ll show you the formula that has transformed many crazy workplaces into places that authentically earned their designations as “best places to work.”

Not just great cultures but performance cultures where everyone ties to profit daily, weekly, monthly and quarterly.

If you’re the kind of leader…

Who feels you have a good culture, but there are just a few people who “stir the pot” and bring in their drama.
Hang tight because I’ll show you how you can take back your sanity.

If your culture is near perfect and those behaviors hardly happen, hallelujah, that’s fabulous! Stick with me and I’ll show you how to keep your workplace sane and productive because, as you know, it only takes one person to destroy the great culture you created.

Or if your culture scores aren’t good, and you’re bummed … there’s hope. Many organisations before you used this system to go from train wreck to top of peer performance and top culture scores within 18 months so keep the faith.  NOBODY gets to take your energy.

Culture scores worldwide are abysmal … and they’re trending downward. Far more people dislike their workplace than are engaged.

Let’s get you a few ideas you can implement within weeks to catapult your culture.

Step 1: Forget the fluffy

Bringing in a motivational speaker or using other fluffy approaches won’t solve the problem of destructive behaviors. Instead, you need to create a movement, driven from within, with the right organizational development structures that can align your team to the values and behaviors you stand for.

You have one chance to do it right. Each subsequent attempt will be harder as they roll their eyes and chant,
“this too shall pass.”

Step 2: Set Non-Negotiables

Clearly define unacceptable behavior and what will get someone “off the bus.” This will protect your work culture from crazy-making behaviors. Most organizations are like roads without lines or stop signs—nobody really knows what is unacceptable. It’s mayhem and nobody likes it.

Step 3: Timing is Everything

Don’t release non-negotiables until your team has both been inspired to elevate their way of doing things and have the skills to hold each other accountable. The trouble makers never show themselves to upper management so if your team doesn’t have the skills to say, “that’s not how we do things around here,” you can expect this to be as sustainable as eating Chinese food—you’ll feel hunger pain within hours.

Step 4: Build a Sustainable System

Non-negotiables are like kindergarten but you must get the graduate degree. It’s not enough to simply set
non-negotiables. There’s so much more to remove and keep out the inauthentic and indirect communication, such as gossip and passive-aggressive behavior that makes your entire team feel unsafe.

Those behaviors make it impossible to lead—there is always an undercurrent so you can keep up the breaststroke but let’s face it, you’re getting nowhere near shore.

Years ago restaurants had “no smoking” sections. Everyone knew that the passive smoke, even if you were in those sections, was lethal and caused you to hack up a lung.

Suppose only some of your people live by your values, behaviors and non-negotiables. In that case, they’re in the
“no smoking section” but they’re breathing the toxic fumes from your gossipers, whiners, complainers, and pot stirrers. They can’t possibly be happy and they deserve to be protected.

These steps will create a positive and productive work environment free from gossip and other destructive behaviors. But be careful. You can lose that culture easily.  In my next episode I’ll share with you a system to make sure your culture score improves every single year like most of our clients.

– Roxanne Emmerich

Please watch the video above and share it with your exec team and board.