Sea change 5 double-edged sword philosophies your brand should avoid

Most of us spend the majority of our time actively working with a team, or as part of a human work system. Whether we are conscious of it or not, your brand's corporate culture can make or break how your team feels about the brand and their place in it.

While most awake and aware leaders say they want a constructive brand culture, many are uncertain of what it takes to shape one. Consequently, they unintentionally lead their people toward the fatal, destructive side of the culture coin. They do this by buying into the following five double-edged sword philosophies that can undermine your mission to craft a constructive brand culture.

Here are the five philosophies to avoid: 1. Winning above all else Winning is an incredibly powerful motivator. It can move mountains and deliver profits. But when the need to win overrides better judgement, fragments and erodes core values, runs over people, and leads them to the brink of exhaustion, it must be called out. New behaviors that promote and inspire must be integrated. The pursuit of results above all else can cost relationships, health and wellness, trust, quality and safety. Inside competitive work cultures, members often are expected to operate in a “win/lose” framework, outperform peers and work against—rather than with—their coworkers. What begins as a healthy race often devolves into an unproductive workplace.

Gone unchecked, a once healthy desire to “beat the competition” often creates opportunities for unproductive behaviors and perpetuates neural pathways and automatic ways of thinking. This shows up by people fussing over win/lose scenarios. Shift from a “me” to “we” mindset.

2. Commanding and controlling In competitively-driven organizations, hierarchy reigns. Historically, this has been seen as the right way to lead, and for many decades it has actually worked. This model is flawed. When leaders and team members are expected, and even encouraged, to power up over others,