4 Ways to Identify a Problem Culture (and How to Fix it)
Let’s be real, “culture” is one of those nebulous words that’s hard to put your finger on exactly what it is.
The dictionary defines it as “the set of values, ethics and beliefs held by a certain group”.
Ok, well how do we identify those things? And how come sometimes the values or beliefs we say we have and post up on our conference room walls, aren’t always what we’re actually living by?
The nebulous nature of “culture” makes it easy to point to when things aren’t going well. Maybe you’ve heard others (or even yourself) say something like, “It’s not a cultural fit.” or “The culture just isn’t right.”
What I’m more interested in is: How do we modify and/or change culture that isn’t effectively serving its members or group? How do we identify exactly what it is about the culture that isn’t working and change it to get more desirable results? (Since that’s really what getting results #NoMatterWhat is really about).
Well… I’ve found what I think is the best way to identify what really makes a culture tick at a deeper level.
Inside your startup, Fortune 500 company, community group or even your family, there’s a telltale sign around how effective your culture is: Look at how problems are handled. What do you, or the group, do when something goes wrong?
Here are 4 key problem cultures you’ll be able to start identifying:
Pretend it isn’t happening: We’ve all experienced this one before. There’s clearly a problem. But, it’s just easier to ignore it, set it aside, delay it until later and hope that you don’t have to deal with it. As you probably already guessed, most problems don’t go away. They get worse. And ignoring them will create a bigger problem for you (or your company) down the line.
Misplaced blame: The problems we are dealing with as businesses, governments, communities and families are becoming increasingly complex. The facts are hard to gather, the spin complicates the view, and there are more legal, operational and safety details to think about than ever before. In this case, simple problems may have already been solved along the way, but the bigger, more complex, deep issues keep the group stymied.
Instead of going deep and getting to the heart of what might be happening, it’s oftentimes easier to just blame somebody or something else, isn’t it? We don’t have the results because of: “The pandemic”, “I don’t like my boss”, “The budget wasn’t big enough”, “There wasn’t enough time”… the list goes on and on, so pick your favorite. Blaming materials and resources is an easy answer and easy to get away with (and it may even be true), but it often stops short of getting to the heart of the matter and what really needs to be solved.
Dwelling on the past: The past can’t be changed, unless maybe you have a non-traditional belief in the laws of time and space. Even then, it still can’t be changed. But have you noticed that it often becomes a justification for why certain problems exist? The past can be like a shadow overhanging the present. And that can usually lead to resignation that “things are just the way they are”.
If only we had… hired differently, spent differently, launched differently, we wouldn’t have this “problem”. But since the past is the past, we’re condemned to living with that being a certain way. Again, this lackluster approach falls short of realizing that something can always be done from this point forward. The past is not a limiting factor, it’s a starting point.Solving the consequence not the cause: A friend of mine went to the dentist the other day and he told her something she has long known (see point 1): She’s grinding her teeth. Of course, the natural solution? A mouthguard. And of course the dentist had many options to purchase. This approach is nearly ubiquitous in every business, startup and community so you might be shaking your head in agreement with the solution offered by the dentist… It seems obvious: there was a problem and now we have a solution.
But something is missing here that’s incredibly important and key to success. This example perfectly illustrates an approach that’s tackling only the symptoms or the consequence of something, not the cause. Solving symptoms and consequences will fill the gap in the short term, but likely will produce problems in other areas or delay a bigger issue.
The more effective approach asks a question: Why is are they grinding their teeth in the first place?
Ok, so now you can more easily identify problems in cultures by looking for how problems are solved.
When you see problems that are purposefully ignored;
Problems that are blamed on people, resources and things;
When there’s resignation to deal with problems;
Or, an approach that solves consequences not the cause.
But what do you do about it? The most effective way for a group, business, or individual to deal with a culture-based problem is not to necessarily find an immediate solution. The right approach doesn’t have an immediate solution.
The effective approach will ask: Why? And this is how to fix problems that are culture-based.
Ask:
Why is it a problem to begin with?
Why and when did the problem start?
Why is it happening?
It’s not what. It’s why (and when). Asking why will become your best friend. When you get to the source of any problem and can effectively deal with them, there’s no stopping you.
The challenge I’ll leave you with is this: Start paying attention to how you handle problems, upsets and/or issues. What’s your go-to response? Your responses might actually be different when dealing with different things, so look closely.
Once you can see how you’re working in different cultures, you can create a little space to step back from it and ask why. When you ask why, you’ll start to impact the nebulous nature of culture and start to transform it into something that’s much more effective, workable and even fun.
Promise.