Kittens are Cute But….

Linda LaitalaBusiness, Employees, Leadership, ManagementLeave a Comment

A small gray kitten showed up unexpectedly this week. My husband walked out our back door and there he was, yowling at the top of his lungs.

The second the kitten saw Elmer, he ran over, scampered up the leg of his jeans, and started purring with joy. This was no feral cat.

Someone had tamed this little boy but had not taught him he shouldn’t climb up people’s legs. His “human” probably even encouraged this bad habit because it’s cute when kittens are little.

Bringing on new employees can be like that. They easily adapt to the basics: when to start and stop work, where the bathrooms are, how to find the lunchroom, and how to record their time.

But it may take time and effort to evolve an employee into a committed member of the business. Becoming part of a team is not instant and magic. Are there bad habits they need to unlearn?  How do you entice them to become part of the culture of the organization, your shared values, what is celebrated, what behavior is allowed, and what is not allowed? Culture can direct the actions of group members and becomes a self-reinforcing pattern that is resistant to change.

Jill Magelssen of Express Employment Professionals has all new hires sign this Commitment to Culture.

By the way, I have a sweet, male kitten, looking for a loving owner. Please help me find him a new home! (That’s him in the picture above.)

The road is easier together,

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Time is precious. We are grateful you’ve chosen to spend some with us today.

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