Consistency is key

As I sit in the terminal in Salt Lake City, I’m reminded of a trip I took a few years back with my wife. The one thing that struck me the most was the deep cultural happiness, politeness and willingness to offer a pleasurable and memorable experience.

Not just the hotel where we stayed, the horse farm we saddled up to ride the hills of Utah, the restaurants we frequented, the Olympic bobsled ride we took at a nail-biting 65 miles per hour, the cab ride to and from the airport, the movie theatre where we grabbed the latest show, but every single interaction and experience of our visit. It was consistent, across the board, everyone on board! That was not just awesome, it was eye-opening.
 

Plants vs. people

I know we are all dedicated to growing the most consistent plant material our customers can count on. Superior quality and consistency is what they not only expect—they demand. So how do we then create the same type of consistency within our teams? A level of excellence where everyone is engaged, enthusiastic, committed and confident in their day-to-day execution of your company’s mission.

Well, there’s a good starting point: Does your company actually have a mission, a vision, a set of values that drive your employees forward on a daily basis? The end result or goal that I offer every company I am blessed to work with is something called a “line of one culture”— the ability to create a solid and unified force of people and energy, focused on accomplishing the same mission.

There’s that word again: mission. For any company to offer a perfect product, delivered by caring, friendly people in a timely way, you must have a mission that everyone can believe in and commit to on a daily basis. Your mission is to revisit the overreaching reason why you open the doors every day. Is it to make money? Fine. Is it to grow world-class, exquisite plants? Great. Is it to keep the family business for one more generation? Perfect.

Your employees are asking the very same question every single day, and if their answer is “because I have to,” you may not have the consistent workplace for your plants and people to thrive and survive. If their answer is “because I want to,” then you have the kind of environment that can grow, build and transform your culture, your clients and your future.

Which is your answer — Do I “have” to or do I “want” to? I am always delighted to create systems within organizations that promote the culture of “want.” Ones that celebrate successes, ones that support the training needs of the organization, ones that quickly address issues, ones that strive to not do a bunch of stuff “well,” but execute a handful of things better than any other competitor.

We should all create a culture where there are “five things that you manage every day” to a high level of accuracy and commitment, and then there are “five things that you master everyday” without exception, without negotiation. These are your “mission possible” items. When you align your team and your company to these 10 objectives, tie them into your mission, feed the employees the top three meals they hunger (motivation, communication, delegation), and do this every day to a level of consistency that stands heads above the competition, you will have found your “line of one culture.”

I would rather be consistently mediocre than inconsistently great. At least I know what I am getting on a consistent basis. Somewhat sarcastic and snarky, but so very true.