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Forget “Culture Fit.”
Let’s be honest.
“Culture fit” is a bullshit term.
It’s a lazy excuse to hire people who look, act, and think like you.
It’s a way to avoid the messy, uncomfortable work of building a real company culture.
One that’s diverse, dynamic, and driven by a shared purpose.
The Problem with “Culture Fit”
Here’s the thing: You don’t want a company full of clones.
You want a tribe of mavericks, each with their own unique skills, perspectives, and experiences.
People who challenge you, push you, and make you better.
Hiring for “culture fit” is like building a sports team with only quarterbacks.
Sure, you’ll have a lot of talent in one area, but you’ll lack the diversity and depth you need to win championships.
Building a Tribe: The Antidote to Mediocrity
Instead of “culture fit,” focus on building a tribe.
A tribe is a group of people who share a common purpose, values, and identity.
They’re not afraid to be different, but they’re united in their pursuit of a shared goal.
Here’s how to start building your tribe:
Define Your Purpose: What is your company’s reason for existence? What problem are you solving? What impact do you want to have on the world? Your purpose is your North Star, guiding everything you do.
Articulate Your Values: What are the non-negotiable principles that your company stands for? How do you treat your employees, customers, and partners? Your values are the foundation of your culture.
Hire for Potential, Not Pedigree: Don’t just look for people who have done the job before. Look for people who have the potential to be great. People who are hungry, curious, and eager to learn.
Empower Your People: Give your employees the autonomy to make decisions, take risks, and experiment. Trust them to do their jobs, and they’ll reward you with their loyalty and creativity.
Celebrate Diversity: Don’t be afraid to hire people who are different from you. Different backgrounds, different perspectives, different experiences. The more diverse your team, the more innovative and resilient your company will be.
The Payoff of Tribal Culture
Building a tribe takes time, effort, and intentionality. But the payoff is worth it.
A strong culture can lead to:
Increased productivity: Employees who feel connected to their work and their colleagues are more engaged and productive.
Reduced turnover: A positive culture creates a sense of belonging, which makes employees less likely to leave.
Improved morale: When employees feel valued and appreciated, their morale soars.
Enhanced creativity: A diverse team with a shared purpose is more likely to come up with innovative solutions.
Stronger brand: A positive culture attracts top talent and customers.
The Myth of “Company Culture” (and What to Build Instead)
Let’s be brutally honest: most companies don’t have a culture.
They have a collection of perks, a ping pong table, maybe a beer fridge on Fridays.
That’s not culture.
It’s a facade.
Real culture isn’t about foosball or kombucha on tap.
It’s about the unspoken rules, the unwritten code that governs how people behave, interact, and make decisions.
It’s the collective mindset that drives your company forward or holds it back.
The Culture Iceberg
Imagine culture as an iceberg.
What you see on the surface — the perks, the slogans, the mission statements — is just the tip.
The real culture lies beneath the surface, in the unspoken beliefs, values, and assumptions that shape how your company operates.
This hidden culture is far more powerful than any superficial trappings.
It’s the invisible force that determines whether your employees are engaged, innovative, and willing to go the extra mile.
The Culture Audit: Facing the Ugly Truth
If you want to build a truly great culture, you need to start by taking a long, hard look in the mirror.
Conduct a culture audit.
Ask yourself tough questions:
What are the unspoken rules that govern our behavior?
What do we value most?
What are our biggest blind spots?
What behaviors are we tolerating that we shouldn’t be?
This isn’t a feel-good exercise.
It’s about facing the ugly truth about your company culture, so you can start making the necessary changes.
The Culture Blueprint: Designing Your Future
Once you understand your current culture, you can start designing the culture you want.
Here’s a simple framework to get you started:
Vision: What do you want your company to be known for? What kind of impact do you want to have on the world?
Values: What are the non-negotiable principles that will guide your decisions and actions?
Behaviors: What specific behaviors do you want to encourage and discourage?
Systems: What systems and processes can you put in place to reinforce your desired culture?
This blueprint is your roadmap to a stronger, healthier, and more successful company.
The Culture Catalyst: Leadership that Ignites, Not Just Dictates
Culture doesn’t trickle down, it radiates outward.
It’s not a top-down memo, it’s the energy emanating from the heart of your organization.
And at the heart of every great culture is a leader who ignites, not just dictates.
The Leadership Mirror
Your employees are watching you, consciously or not.
They mirror your behaviors, internalize your values, and model your emotional responses.
If you’re constantly putting out fires, your team will be in a perpetual state of reaction.
If you’re a micromanager, they’ll learn to hide their mistakes instead of learning from them.
If you’re driven by fear, they’ll be paralyzed by it.
But if you’re passionate, purposeful, and empowering, they’ll be inspired to rise to the occasion.
If you trust them, they’ll trust you.
If you lead with vulnerability, they’ll follow with authenticity.
The Culture Catalyst
Your role as a leader isn’t just to manage tasks, it’s to cultivate an environment where people thrive.
You’re not just a boss, you’re a culture catalyst.
This means going beyond the surface-level trappings of culture and focusing on the deeper elements that truly matter:
Trust: Do your employees feel safe to speak their minds, share their ideas, and make mistakes?
Autonomy: Are they empowered to make decisions, take ownership, and drive their own projects?
Purpose: Do they understand how their work contributes to the bigger picture, and do they feel a sense of meaning and impact?
Connection: Do they feel a sense of belonging and camaraderie with their colleagues? Do they support and celebrate each other’s successes?
These are the building blocks of a thriving tribal culture.
And as a leader, it’s your responsibility to create the conditions where these elements can flourish.
Igniting the Spark
So, how do you ignite the spark of culture within your team?
It starts with leading by example:
Be transparent: Share your vision, your challenges, and your vulnerabilities.
Be accountable: Own your mistakes, learn from them, and share your lessons with your team.
Be empowering: Give your people the tools, resources, and autonomy they need to succeed.
Be appreciative: Recognize and reward your team’s hard work and contributions.
Be human: Don’t be afraid to show your emotions, share your passions, and connect with your team on a personal level.
Remember, culture isn’t a program or a policy.
It’s a living, breathing organism that’s constantly evolving.
Your role as a leader is to nurture that organism, to provide the right environment for it to thrive.
The Culture Crucible: Where Values Are Forged, Not Just Talked About
The most potent cultures aren’t built in boardrooms or HR manuals.
They’re forged in the crucible of adversity, where words are put to the test and values are either upheld or exposed as empty platitudes.
The Adversity Advantage
When things are going smoothly, it’s easy to maintain a positive facade.
But when the storm hits — a market downturn, a product failure, a PR disaster — that’s when your true culture reveals itself.
Companies with resilient cultures don’t merely weather these storms; they emerge stronger, more united, and more determined.
Adversity becomes a catalyst for growth, not a cause for collapse.
Why?
Because adversity forces a reckoning with the core values that supposedly define your organization.
It’s in the crucible of crisis that you discover whether those values are deeply ingrained or simply lip service.
The Crucible Blueprint
Here’s how you can intentionally create a culture crucible within your organization, forging a tribe that thrives under pressure:
Embrace Failure as a Learning Opportunity: Don’t punish mistakes, celebrate them as stepping stones to growth. Encourage experimentation, risk-taking, and the freedom to fail forward.
Welcome Dissent as a Strength: Don’t just tolerate dissenting opinions, actively seek them out. Encourage healthy debate, challenge assumptions, and foster an environment where diverse perspectives are valued.
Build Trust Through Transparency: Be open and honest about challenges, setbacks, and even your own shortcomings. Vulnerability builds trust, and trust is the bedrock of any high-performing team.
Cultivate Resilience Through Challenge: Don’t shield your team from adversity, expose them to it (within reason). Provide the support and resources they need to overcome obstacles, and they’ll emerge stronger and more capable.
Celebrate Small Wins, Big Victories: Acknowledge and reward both individual and collective achievements. Create rituals and traditions that reinforce your values and foster a sense of shared purpose.
The Antifragile Organization
The goal isn’t just to survive adversity, but to thrive in it.
To become what Nassim Taleb calls “antifragile” — not just resilient, but actually strengthened by stress and disorder.
Antifragile organizations are constantly learning, adapting, and evolving.
They embrace change as an opportunity, not a threat.
And they emerge from each challenge stronger, wiser, and more innovative.
The Ultimate Test
The true test of your culture isn’t how it looks on paper, it’s how it holds up under pressure.
It’s not about the slogans on your website or the values on your wall, it’s about the actions of your people when the chips are down.
If you can build a culture that thrives in the crucible, you’ll create a company that’s not just successful, but unstoppable.
Scott