Picture this:

A work culture where people feel guarded. You can talk about things, but only to a point. You probably only trust a few people—if that. And with those people, you find yourself talking about all the issues and problems in the company.

When it comes down to problems, there are many—but your hopes of their being addressed are waning. You grin and bare it, and know that you either can’t afford to leave, have a “special situation,” or know you won’t be there forever, so you choose to take it in stride.

Sound familiar?

These types of scenarios are all too common in company cultures. You may think that the solution is to create more systems and structures to help people communicate, but I’ve actually found something more critical.

Companies typically have workflows and processes in place, but what’s missing are the key mindsets that that allow for the business and team potential to be realized.

Here are the top five ways to create a Success Culture:

Develop Trust

You generally feel like you can trust people. This means you can be vulnerable, asking for help knowing that you won’t be judged unfairly for requesting support on important projects and initiatives.

Create Clarity

There is a clear sense of direction. You know what you’re doing, and what others are doing. Do your team members have clarity about the strategic direction on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis? And, if a change to that direction is made, are they clear on what that change is, why it was made, and their role in that strategic shift?

Decide Powerfully

Often the way teams are making decisions is nebulous and ineffective. Your ability as a leader to help you team decide on a direction, and get everyone onboard can be one of the most critical factors to your business success. Facilitate this process in a powerful way, and watch decision-making flow—and more importantly, stick.

Facilitate Alignment

Team members need to feel like they’re working together and marching in the same direction. If someone on your team feels like they are working at cross-purposes with anyone else on the team, they should be encouraged to bring it up, and feel confident that it will get resolved. Getting team alignment can be challenging at first, but is one of the best levers you can pull for rapid change and transformation.

Demand Accountability

If people on your team or project don’t fulfill on their commitments for any reason, you as the leader, and others on the team need to be able to call this out. This is one of the most challenging things to do as a leader—and it’s even harder as a peer. Setting your culture up so accountability can be addressed in a direct and “non-aggressive” way is a a key component to your team and business success.

I’d love to hear what your biggest challenges are around using these tools. Let’s connect!