7 Habits Of An Unhealthy Culture vs. 7 Habits Of A Healthy Culture

Leadership never stays the same.  It is always advancing or declining.  Leaders understand this reality.  As a leader you are always taking people and organizations somewhere.  You cannot take people to where you already are.

Recently, Sports Illustrated profiled two teams from different sports who appear headed in opposite directions.  In its August 18th edition, Andy Staples profiled the Florida Gators who are coming off a 4-8 season.  The following week Ben Reiter looked at the Kansas City Royals who are having their best season in a generation.

As I read both articles, I found the contrast fascinating.  Therefore, I would like to provide you 7 Habits Of An Unhealthy Culture vs. 7 Habit Of A Healthy Culture I gleaned from these two organizations:

7 Habits Of An Unhealthy Culture – the Florida Gators

1. An Unhealthy Culture Fosters Insecurity – Will Muschamp said to a group of Gator fans, “Folks, after going 4-8, I don’t need to piss anybody else off.”
2. An Unhealthy Culture Has Little Depth – With its top two quarterbacks injured, Muschamp said, “It’s tough to throw the ball down the field when your third-string quarterback is playing behind third-string linemen and your best back is out, allowing the defense to drop seven or eight on every play – unless we want to call guaranteed interceptions.”
3. An Unhealthy Culture Is In Continual Transition – In unhealthy organizations there are often “sacrificial lambs”.  Muschamp fired offensive coordinator Brent Pease and offensive line coach Tim Davis this past off-season.
4. An Unhealthy Culture Has Poor Communication – The team hired new offensive coordinator Kurt Roper to streamline communications.  Duke head coach David Cutcliffe said of his former employee, “Kurt is really, really smart.  One of the things he’ll bring to Florida is a better way to communicate offense.”
5. An Unhealthy Culture Is Made Up Of Under-Achievers – In the 2011 high school quarterback class, Florida quarterback Jeff Driskel was ranked ahead of NFL first round picks Johnny Manziel and Teddy Bridgewater.  He was also ranked ahead of current stars Brett Hundley and Marcus Mariota.
6. An Unhealthy Culture Is Marked By A Lack Of Loyalty – Loyalty will not make you a leader but disloyalty will disqualify you as one.  Driskel said, “Obviously, we’re behind our coach 100%, but we’re not playing to save his job.  We’re playing for the University of Florida.  We’re playing for each other.”
7. An Unhealthy Culture Often Avoids Hard Decisions – Athletic director Jeremy Foley said, “If something needs to be done eventually, it needs to be done immediately.”  Then why wait after a 4-8 season?  Driskell added, “At the end of the day, college coaches are always on the hot seat.”

7 Habit Of Healthy Culture – the Kansas City Royals

1. A Healthy Culture Prioritizes A Long-Term Process Over Short-Term Progress – The team’s general manager since 2006, Dayton Moore’s build-from-within philosophy is something he learned from over a decade working in the Atlanta Braves front office.
2. A Healthy Culture Has People Committed To A Compelling Vision – Moore said, “It’s been a challenging road.  But our people have stayed consistent with the plan.”
3. A Healthy Culture Celebrates Achievement – What gets rewarded gets repeated and winning matters.  Moore said, “The bottom line is, you win major league games, it takes away the venom.”
4. A Healthy Culture Focuses On The Right Things – Success if predicated on three things – hitting, fielding, pitching.  The Royals do two very well.  They rank first in defensive percentage.  Their staff ERA was fourth (3.60) at the time of the article.
5. A Healthy Culture Continually Adds Young Talent – A healthy church or organization can never have enough young talent.  Moore says, “(Atlanta Braves executive) Paul Snyder told me that you have to have 20 average or better pitching prospects just to get two or three to perform that way in the major leagues.  Sure enough, that’s been the formula.”
6. A Healthy Culture Finishes Assignments Well – The Royals have a strong bullpen.  They are 50-3 when leading after six innings.
7. A Healthy Culture Avoids Complacency – What made you successful today will not keep you successful tomorrow.  Left fielder Alex Gordon said, “Everything is great right now, but if we let up, it can turn around.”

Which culture best describes your church, non-profit, team or organization?

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