Why We Should Be More Like Google

In any school, organization or business, a culture exists.

Sometimes the existing culture is dynamic, contagious and breeds creative success which everyone wants to be a part of.

Other times, not so much.

A friend of mine told me a few weeks ago, “Ryan, if you want to go somewhere — go alone. If you want to go far — go together”. He is right.

It is no wonder why companies like Google are cannot turn people away fast enough. They are one of the best companies to work for right now in the United States and have such a high satisfaction rate among their staff. They have created a culture of success within the company that continues to attract and hold highly talented individuals who feel valued.

Here which outlines some ground rules for Mangers at Google.

Aside from the rules, here are some of the main perks that are offered by Google to their employees:

Free breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The organic food is chef-prepared
Free health and dental
Free haircuts
Free dry cleaning
Subsidized massages
Gyms and swimming pools
Hybrid car subsidies
Nap pods
Video games, foosball, ping pong
On-site physicians
Death Benefits

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Creating a culture of success is actually more simple than we think it is. Too often, Organizations get caught up in a cycle of profitability or productivity and forget that if they build their Organization around the people they have hired that is ultimate key to creating a culture of success.

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Here are the top four ways you can either build a culture of success or identify an Organization that will have a culture of success.

Relationships Before Resources

People in any industry and in any vocation want to be heard first. It is a fundamental law of human nature that is timeless. This goes back thousands of years. Ancient Egyptians scribed symbols into stones to be heard. If you can spot an Organization that values relationships over resources you are on the right track in creating a culture of success.

People Over Productivity

This seems pretty clear. However, many Organizational cultures have forgotten the importance of this in the 21st century. Rightfully so. It is extremely hard to run an organization that is productive yet values its’ people over production. It is easier said than done. If you find an Organization who does this, you have found a Unicorn. If you are part of an organization that follows this, congratulations on winning the lottery!

Reverse Leadership

Leadership should flow through every level of the Organization. You should have it at every level but most importantly; you should feel it at every level in a non-threatening way. The absolute best leadership is when your top leaders are willing to do the dirty work for everyone in the Organization. They will serve others without being asked and ensure that all members of the Organization feel valued, supported and important.

All Hands On Deck

While in New York, I worked for a tremendous leader that taught me the value of an “All hands on deck” policy within an Organization. Every day we had early morning leadership meetings and he was never afraid to call on any of us to switch into a different task or to help in a unique situation or to help solve a problem that needed attention. I have seen this “All hands on deck” policy built in with other Organizations as well and it is fascinating to see leaders come together to get the job done time after time when this is permissible, encouraged and engrained in the fabric of the leadership.

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Ultimately, creating a culture of success is about people. Cocooning yourself with the right team, philosophies and creativity will produce amazing results. Google continues to do this and continues to be a beacon for how companies should cater to their employees.

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This post was previously published on Medium.com.

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