When I was growing up, my Mom made the best desserts. I remember coming home from school one day and the house was filled with the smell of freshly baked chocolate brownies!

Mom held out a plate of her famous treats! I grabbed one, said thanks, and took a huge bite.

And – yuck. Mom changed up the recipe that day. She added walnuts to the brownies! I got a bite of walnuts when I expected a bite of pure chocolate!

I didn’t like the surprise. I was shocked.

Most employees don’t like surprises, either. Yet our organizations and work teams deliver surprises to team members all the time.

Those frequent surprises cause team members to distrust their leaders and peers. Team members learn they can’t depend on systems or people to support their efforts, to remove frustrations, or to validate ideas and contributions.

That’s no way to run a purposeful, positive, productive work culture.

In today’s three-minute episode of my Culture Leadership Charge video series, I share how you can eliminate frustrating surprises and boost trust, respect, and dignity in your work team daily.

My Culture Leadership Charge series features short (two-to-three-minute) videos that describe proven culture leadership and servant leadership practices that boost engagement, service, and results across your work teams, departments, regions, and even your entire company.

Each episode’s “charge” is a challenge for everyone in your organization – not just leaders – to refine their behaviors and ensure everyone is treated respectfully at all times.

You’ll find my Culture Leadership Charge episodes and more on my YouTube channel. If you like what you see, please subscribe!

Check out @scedmonds #Culture #Leadership Charge video series on @YouTube http://drtc.me/ytube Click To Tweet

Photo © Adobe Stock – Wayhome Studio. All rights reserved.

What kinds of surprises happen to your team members at work? How have you reduced the frequency of workplace surprises? Share your insights on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

S. Chris Edmonds

Chris helps leaders create purposeful, positive, productive work cultures. He's a speaker, author, and executive consultant. He blogs, podcasts, and video casts. He is the author of two Amazon bestsellers: Good Comes First (2021) and The Culture Engine (2014).
How do you like to learn? Read books | Listen to podcasts | Watch videos

Do you want to boost engagement by 40%?

Chris will show you how to better align your culture in a step-by-step process that has worked time and time again.

No thanks