The Culture Code: The Secrets of Highly Successful Groups

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It consisted of one simple phrase: I’m giving you these comments because I have very high expectations and I know that you can reach them.” Pg. 56

Culture is not something you are—it’s something you do. The Culture Code puts the power in your hands. No matter the size of your group or your goal, this book can teach you the principles of cultural chemistry that transform individuals into teams that can accomplish amazing things together. Bad apple behavior – any behavior in a group that negatively influences other team members – should not be tolerated. In the successful groups Coyle researched, this type of behavior was not only noticed but also named; this way, it was easier to fight it. Create collision-rich spaces Listen Like a Trampoline: Good listening is about more than nodding attentively; it’s about adding insight and creating moments of mutual discovery. The most effective listeners do four things:According to Coyle, most successful groups not only make priority lists – they shorten those lists, ending up with a couple priorities. And the top priority is always building a group itself and nourishing the relationships among its members. Without a cohesive team, there will be no chance to produce successful products or provide services. Be ten times as clear about your priorities as you think you should be Artifacts have the same meaning as catchphrases: they represent identity and purpose. Group artifacts - like awards and trophies - are physical reminders of what the team stands for. Focus on bar-setting behavior When Forming New Groups, Focus on Two Critical Moments: “Traces any group’s cooperation norms to two critical moments that happen in a group’s early life. They are: 1. The first vulnerability. 2. The first disagreement.” Pg. 161 But they succeeded because they understood that being vulnerable together is the only way a team can become invulnerable.” Pg. 145

Professor Alex Pentland at MIT’s media lab found that if he observed people’s body language, he could predict the outcomes of negotiations within five minutes of starting a session. That’s because how close we are to our co-workers, whether we mimic their behavior, and look into their eyes, are instant tells of how safe we feel. One good way to make others feel safer is to confirm you understand what they’re telling you by occasionally interjecting affirmations like “uh-huh,”“yes,”“got it,” and so on. Just don’t interrupt them. Purpose unites teams to work well together toward a common goal. It is essential for successful collaboration.Niklas Göke is an author and writer whose work has attracted tens of millions of readers to date. He is also the founder and CEO of Four Minute Books, a collection of over 1,000 free book summaries teaching readers 3 valuable lessons in just 4 minutes each. What is one thing that I don’t currently do frequently enough that you think I should do more often?

Coyle doesn’t just provide an outline for what we should do to keep teams motivated and working together; he also provides some eye-opening examples of behaviors that can sabotage a team’s motivation and offers practical advice and action steps to take to boost collaboration and support a winning culture. What Is Organizational Culture?If you had to bet which of the teams would win, it would not be a difficult choice. You would bet on the business school tudents, because they possess the intelligence, skills, and ex- perience to do a superior job. This is the way we normally hink about group performance. We presume skilled individ- uals will combine to produce skilled performance in the same way we presume two plus two will combine to produce four. Your bet would be wrong. In dozens of trials, kindergart- ners built structures that averaged twenty-six inches tall, while business school students built structures that averaged ess than ten inches.* Once Inc. magazine did an experiment, in which they asked executives at 600 companies to roughly estimate the percentage of their employees who could name the company’s top 3 priorities. Success and achievements must be measured by things that are important for your company and reflect the bigger vision behind it. For example, Zappos call center workers were measured by the number of calls they handled per hour – but it had nothing to do with their real purpose, and, even worse, being in a hurry meant people made more mistakes. This lesson focuses on creating cooperation and boosting collaboration within groups and between individuals. People tend to think of vulnerability in a touchy-feely way, but that’s not what’s happening,…It’s about sending a really clear signal that you have weaknesses, that you could use help. And if that behavior becomes a model for others, then you can set the insecurities aside and get to work, start to trust each other and help each other. If you never have that vulnerable moment, on the other hand, then people will try to cover up their weaknesses, and every little microtask becomes a place where insecurities manifest themselves.” Dr. Jeff Polzer, pg. 104