🚦 Two-Way Street
🍨 And-And Culture
🏭 The X Factor
🚦 Empowerment Is a Two-Way Street
A leader can create a fun, dynamic work environment that gives people every opportunity to thrive, but that doesn’t mean everyone always “steps up” to the challenge.
Empowerment is a two-way street, and how employees use that latitude is their choice.
This isn’t easy. The hardest part of being empowered is the risk of falling down. But that’s also the true value of being empowered.
You might make a mistake or two, but if you’re working in the right environment that’s ok. Great leaders want their employees to try, learn, adapt, and grow so they can get better.
Because when you grow and get better, you raise the performance of everyone around you.
This is a call to action to both sides:
Leaders: Choose to empower. Running through command-and-control is unproductive and exhausting. Give your team the latitude to thrive.
Employees: Take every opportunity to step up. In this marketplace, the only real limiter is you. Think about it. The unemployment rate is near zero. If a boss holds you back then you have every right to “graduate” to a new job or company. There’s really very little risk, but everything to gain.
One Stat to Watch
30%
of employees are highly engaged, meaning they were highly involved and enthusiastic about their work and workplaces. 30% isn’t good! According to Gallup, in 2024 employee engagement dropped to its lowest level in eleven years.
🍨 And-And Culture
Brett Stevenson, COO of Central Smith said, “We have an And-And culture. Our people have their jobs, and they ask, ‘What else can I do?’”
This isn’t normal. Many companies operate with an “And-Or” culture. Employees do their jobs well, but they rarely venture outside of their defined roles and responsibilities.
In the extreme of an And-Or culture is “quiet quitting” and “working for the weekend.” This is where employees put in the minimum amount of effort to keep their jobs but don’t go the extra mile for their employer.
Creating a culture where employees not only feel comfortable to stretch their roles, but are empowered to do so is incredibly valuable. It demonstrates trust and purpose.
Patrick Lencioni writes in The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, “Trust is knowing that when a team member does push you, they’re doing it because they care about the team.”
You can feel the absence of trust in a culture. There’s no conflict, no debate, and people keep their heads down, do their jobs, and go home.
To me, what’s the point of that? We spend the best hours of our days at work. If you can create a culture where people are able to bring their whole selves and contribute fully every single day, your brand will grow into something truly remarkable.
Great brands are built from the inside out.
🏭 Talent Is the X Factor
Andrew Carnegie said, “Take away my people, but leave my factories, and soon grass will grow on the factory floors. Take away my factories, but leave my people, and soon we will have a new and better factory.”
I love this quote! It speaks to the power of talent. When you have the right people, you can achieve great things.
It doesn’t matter how much money or resources you have at your disposal. When you work with talented, passionate, and engaged people, it’s like stepping on the gas. It’s surprising how far and fast you can go.
But if talents are misaligned, your company’s performance is stunted. It’s like driving on bald tires. You just can’t get traction — there is always something holding you back no matter how hard you step on the gas.
Jim Collins wrote in Good to Great, “Those who build great companies understand that the ultimate throttle on growth for any company is not markets, or technology, or competition, or products. It is one thing above all others: the ability to get and keep enough of the right people.”
Branding isn’t just about marketing. It’s about creating an organization that is purposefully built to innovate and serve your clients. When you do that well, you will thrive no matter what gets thrown at you!
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