Musings at Altitude

We’re all actors in a sense, out on stage most of the time trying to be what others want us to be and trying to act the way others want us to act.  After watching us, many folks walk away thinking that’s the way it really is, because they want to believe that what they see on stage is indeed reality.

Culture isn’t what happens up on stage though.  Culture is what happens behind the scenes.  Culture is what’s going on in the lead up to the act on the stage, and the tear down once that scene is done.

More often than not, the audience only sees the perfect portrayal of a character and the perfect delivery of lines.  It seems so natural, and we smile in thinking that’s the way it really is.

In fact, off stage is stress.  Off stage is incredible pressure to do things right and to be things we may not be.  Off stage is critique that may or may not be warranted and expectations that may or may not be expressed.  Off stage is where the bonds are tightened or the harmony between characters destroyed.

That’s where the culture is created and that’s where culture is found.

Leaders (or directors) need to be behind the scenes, desperately seeking and passionately driving the culture.  They need to be listening to the whispers during the rehearsals.  They need to see the tears or smiles and sense the frustration or joy.  They need to be encouraging, nurturing, harmonizing, and mentoring during the build up to the performance, and then during the performance, they need to be cheering, promoting, believing, and rewarding.

If the leader is deep into the culture and active behind the scenes, then what happens on the stage isn’t an act at all, but an accurate reflection of the culture.

Then good or bad, it’s reality.

And that’s indeed your culture.