Behaviour is Learned

A change in the belief is needed to prompt a change in behaviour. For the beliefs to change, there must be some motivation to do so, i.e. if I stop believing that my boss has it in for me and start being a bit more open, my day-to-day interactions with them might improve. 

Motivation: A better work environment and reduced anxiety  

Belief: Change from “my boss is trying to sack me" to "he is giving me opportunity to grow by highlighting areas for improvement"  

Behaviour: Once the new belief takes hold, my behaviour shifts to focusing on my improvement, not being scared of my boss 

Motivation: Would like more support from my colleagues 

Belief: Change from "they take me for granted" to "they don’t know how to show appreciation" 

Behaviour: Once the new belief takes hold, you start modelling appreciation and it is contagious 

The culture of an organisation is unlikely to change unless there is a focus on the behaviour that is accepted and the beliefs that drive the behaviour.  We learn how to behave from those around us.  A child will learn the family’s behaviour to know what is acceptable. Some families are very affectionate, and the child will learn to hug and kiss. Other children will grow up thinking that a pat on the back is the height of affection. There is nothing wrong with either of the behaviours, however, when the child starts interacting with other families, they may change their behaviour slightly in different situations.   

The same is true for work teams. Over time, a certain set of behaviours become acceptable and entrenched in the culture. These behaviours may contribute to improving the culture: giving support and appreciation to each other. They can also be detrimental to the culture gossiping or whinging about a problem with no intention to improve the problem.   

You may be aware of the above the line and below the line model. This is referenced in Carolyn Taylor’s book “Walking the Talk – building a culture for success.”  She is an organisational culture expert and states that she was introduced to the concept by Robert Kiyosaki (author of Rich Dad, Poor Dad). Although it is often referenced in culture change, it is always unattributed.  I often think of the model in terms of the great John McLain quote in the movie Die Hard, “If you are not part to the solution, you are part of the problem.” I believe that the way you behave every day in your team determines if you are above the line (part of the solution) or below the line (part of the problem). Once the effort is put in to change the behaviour which is considered acceptable, a cumulative effect is seen for other behaviours, like a rock rolling down a hill, it gathers momentum.  It might only require a slight change in perspective or motivation to change the behaviour and in turn the culture.

Behaviour is the part of the Venn diagram above that is visible to the team if you can influence the behaviour by tweaking motivation or belief you will start the rock rolling towards cultural change.