“They have to learn how to win.”  

This quote came from Packers’ QB Aaron Rodgers. He was talking about his young team, and it made me think. “They have to learn how to win as a team.”

Having strong, toothy core values will smoke and flush out the folks I call "core value terrorists", or CVT’s. We must eliminate these CVTs from our teams, lives, and organizations. 

Tyranny (noun): Cruel and unfair treatment by people with power over others.

I see this issue manifest inside my client’s teams all the time. They always wear one or both of the following masks, and both of these terrorists are originally considered absolutely "indispensable".

Terrorist Mask 1: Mensa Member Michele.

Mensa Michele is super smart, so technical, and so skilled. How will we ever survive without Michele? You know who I’m talking about. She wields her power over the team, hides key details, holds things back, holds you hostage, and doesn’t fit your core values. It is tyrannical behavior and it must stop for the good of the team.

"Core Values is not something you do to your people.
It is something you do for your people, and yourself."

Protecting your company’s core values starts with your interview process.

(Note: Please come to grips with the fact that there is no way to "test" someone for core values alignment. They can only test themselves. Anyone can fake it for the length of your interview process.)

Attract or Repel: The secret is to lay your values out so clearly during your interview process that your candidate is either fully attracted or repelled by your values and can make a commitment to live by them before their first second on your team.

You’re talking to Johnny, the new recruit:

"Johnny, I want to share our company's core values with you because I’m making a promise to you right now. I promise to do everything in my power to ensure that you are surrounded with others who share and live our core values.

“Man, I'm only using 60% of my brain at work, and it stinks!”

Above is a comment from Bob, a friend and former Integrator of an EOS client of mine. My client sold her company and Bob moved on to the same position in another company.

"I'm checking 40% of my brain at the Door." Bob says of his new company.

Bob’s new company is self-implementing EOS - i.e. tearing a proven methodology apart by cherry picking the tools from a proven system, that the owner feels “fit his organization best." A clear sign of: The Smartest, Dumbest Guy in the Room Syndrome (SDG).

This means there is a Smartest Guy in the room, who is actually the dumbest guy in the room, because of one fact: The SDG (Smartest Dumbest Guy) is not focusing on ensuring his teammates are bringing their whole brain to work. He doesn’t know why, he doesn’t even know that he doesn’t even know. Thus, he is the Smartest, Dumbest Guy in the room.

Your Organizational Operating System is your disaster plan.

“All hands on deck.”

This saying has special meaning to me and it involves danger and lives. Having raced large sailboats 60+ feet long with 100 foot tall masts and 17 people on the crew, I’ve heard this phrase a few times. To me and my team, this did not mean “mad scramble”. It meant get up here, man your position, understand the issue, and pay attention so we can get everything under control as a team.