Culture is simply an outcome of our processes.
Put another way, culture is an outcome of our habits.
Nearly 2,000 years ago, Epictetus would recommend that we break our bad habits by simply abstaining from the behavior for one day, then try for two days, and so forth until we’ve built a chain of days. And then the goal was not to break that chain.
Most leaders have a weakness that affects the culture. It could be a short temper, telling inappropriate jokes, a lack of transparency, procrastination, condescension, or worse. The way out is to resolve to correct these behaviors for one day, and then again the next day. To build a chain and then not to break it. As that chain grows stronger, so does the culture.
Hat tip to Ryan Holiday and today’s entry in The Daily Stoic.
The Ethical Leader 