Leading by Example: The Importance of Actions vs. Words

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What actually defines a company culture? Well, from our perspective, it’s the actions of the people that are within it. Our actions define who we are and what we do, and ultimately all a company is…is just a group of people. That’s why your day-to-day actions are extremely important, especially as a leader. Because it shapes your culture.

You’ve probably heard the phrase “actions speak louder than words”, which is something to always keep in mind when you’re in a leadership role. And an image/video is worth 1,000 words. For example, you can send a million emails to your team saying “makes sure you take your PTO, it is important to focus on work-life balance…”, but if the leaders aren’t taking PTO, then the team's culture is not taking PTO. 

We are not saying either is bad but it's the actions of the leader(s) that are shaping the culture of your business. Physically doing it, showing the team that you are taking PTO is very different from you simply  telling everyone that they’re doing it. Simply giving an order or an email reminder to “take your PTO” is not actually going to get them to do it…

Because, that's not the action that they see happening, that's not the culture. All the culture is, is the aggregation of all employees and how they act within the company.