How Gratitude Can Improve Company Culture
Working remotely can strain company culture and complicate communications inside an organization if you don’t have a regular meeting routine. Since November is National Gratitude Month, we thought it was the perfect time to share our team’s daily gratitude practice with other organizations to improve their company culture. Gratitude is more than merely saying, “thank you.” Gratitude has the power to shift us from focusing on the negative to appreciating what is positive in our lives. And finding positive moments has been hard in 2020. That’s why we made it a point to practice gratitude every day as a team, and it positively impacted our company culture at HAVEN.
Daily gratitude practice is something any organization can implement immediately (at no cost) that can immediately impact communication and company culture. First, you have to have a quick daily meeting (aka a huddle) schedule. The huddle comes from the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS). Huddles are meant to be brief check-ins with your team to discuss the tasks for the day. While in the office, our huddles were always project related, but once we went remote, our enthusiasm dwindled while anxiety seemed to be on the rise — that’s when we added the gratitude practice. We believe this small addition to our daily huddle routine had an overwhelmingly positive impact on our company culture and is a big reason why we’ve been able to remain productive while working remotely.
How we start our day
Our daily morning huddle is a short meeting set for 9:30 Tuesday through Friday (we hold longer weekly meetings on Monday). This 15-20 minute huddle is meant to inform and align the team on the work that needs to be done. Each member of the team covers four topics:
1. Gratitude
Each team member starts with something they are grateful for and gives a quick explanation if they choose. This helps the team members focus on something positive and gives other team members a little insight into their life. Some themes we’ve seen recently are coffee, a good night’s sleep, and flexibility.
2. Headline
Your headline should be the one thing you have to get done today. This is the task you’ll be held accountable for, and the team will check back in with you at the end of the day to see where you are.
3. Deadline
This helps you look ahead. What is your next deadline? What project or task should you start working on next?
4. Stuck
Now is the time to discuss anything hindering you from moving forward with your headline or deadline. For example, if you are waiting on approval, this would be the time to bring it up.
5. Headline Y/N
This provides team members with accountability. Remember the headline you set at the beginning of the day? Now each team member is held accountable for that project or task they were supposed to complete. This isn’t meant to shame the team member but instead, to provide support and help if they are struggling for whatever reason.
6. Rate the Day
Team members are asked to rank the previous day from 1 to 10. This helps the team understand any challenges or win that person experienced throughout the day.
Strengthen Your Brand
These easy to implement meetings are ultimately strengthening our culture. Your brand is your culture; your culture is your brand. Your people are your best marketing tool so make sure you invest in them and show your gratitude. And if you need some help aligning it all, you can book a marketing pivot session with HAVEN Creative founder Jeni Bukolt.
