The culture surrounding us is an important element in our ability to pursue health, wellbeing, and sustainable high performance.
Dr. Darin Davidson partners with Learner+, a CME/CE reflective learning platform for healthcare providers. For the opportunity to reflect on this article and earn CME/CE credits, Launch here. Check out all past articles which are also eligible for reflections and CME/CE credits.
For downloadable, actionable strategies and tactics to leverage biology in the pursuit of health, wellbeing, and sustainable high performance, visit the resource store, Launch here. Chapters are arranged by topic so those of interest can be selected and each are also eligible for reflections and CME/CE credits through Learner+.
In a previous article, the importance of culture was described in detail. Essentially, when optimal, this significant element is conducive to the pursuit of health, wellbeing, and sustainable high performance. This is most notably apparent in the domain of high level competitive and professional sports. Within these domains, it is often the case that the most successful teams, particularly those with durable success over time, have an underlying culture which supports and promotes the development of the athletes and coaches, including their abilities to grow and perform at their highest level on a consistent basis. On the other hand, teams which are consistently unsuccessful are often associated with a poor culture in which there is an absence of a supportive framework for the members of the team to be at their best.
The prior article on the importance of culture described some of the important principles underlying development of a successful culture. This applies not only to competitive sports domains, but also to ourselves and the groups with which we associate in the pursuit of health and wellbeing. As such, this applies on an individual basis as well as within our families and friend groups. A positive culture often emerges from repeated actions and behaviors which are exhibited over time and are consistent with our overall vision and philosophy. When this occurs amongst all members of the group, the preferred culture will naturally emerge and become supportive of the vision and philosophy. The ability to establish an authentic culture become synergistic. When the culture which emerges is true and genuine, its ability to support and promote the growth, development, and performance of all members of the team is optimized.
It is also important to consider the ideal characteristics and attributes of preferred culture. As noted above, competitive and professional sports can provide an important illustration of these concepts. This is on account of the fact that these domains are highly visible and both the performance and outcome are easy to define and assess. As such the world of competitive and professional sports can become an ideal case study when we are seeking to understand and develop the principles and concepts which contribute towards developing culture. This can then be applied to the pursuit of health, wellbeing, and sustainable high performance within other domains.
When considering the important issue of culture within competitive and professional sports, football teams are a great example. While culture is undoubtably important across other sports teams, within the sport of football there are several inherent characteristics which provide an even greater opportunity to understand the important dynamics and attributes of preferred cultures. This is on account of football teams consisting of a large number of people. Almost without exception, the members of the team, including the coaching staff, come from different backgrounds and possess different skills and play different roles within the team. As such there are significant and numerous social interactions which occur. In order for the overall team to be successful it is essential that the team work cohesively in its development and in performance during competition. All of these elements contribute to football teams being an excellent example of understanding culture which we can then generalize across our lives within our professional and personal domains.
When considering the most successful teams, there are several important lessons regarding the attributes of the culture within those teams which emerge. First and foremost is the degree of connection amongst all members of the team. While it is often discussed, to the point of being cliché, that connection amongst teammates is always needed and present, it is clear that this is not always the case. In addition when we are seeking to develop and cultivate the ideal culture, it is not a superficial level of connection which we are seeking. In order to fully leverage the benefits of connection amongst teammates and coaches, it is essential that a genuine and authentic bond amongst the various individuals be fostered and developed. This leads to all members feeling valued with respect to their ideas and opinions, as well as their particular skills which contribute towards the overall mission of the team.
When we further consider the important element of connection amongst team members, it becomes apparent that when this is ideally developed, it becomes a strong cue towards anchored and grounded states. In particular through social interaction and activation of social engagement, our biology shifts towards anchored and grounded states. Given the inherent nature of competitive and professional sports, it is often the case that members of the team, both athletes and coaches alike, may experience much of their time within more activated states. By providing the anchored and grounded cues through social interaction this becomes a strong influence towards supporting optimal performance states by shifting towards anchored and grounded states.
The above concept is particularly important when things do not go as planned or the team experiences inevitable setbacks. In such circumstances, it is often the case that there will be greater shifts in biological state towards protective and defensive states. If there is a pre-existing strong connection amongst members of the team, this can be a strong cue in such circumstances to shift back towards anchored and grounded states. Inherently our biology when it encounters social interaction and engagement with trusted others will shift towards anchored and grounded states. This explains, at least in part, why teams which are most connected can perform towards their potential under adverse circumstances.
The most important function and objective of optimizing culture is that it is supportive of each individual’s ability to contribute to the overall team, to grow and develop to their capacity, and to perform at their highest level. This makes it important that the decision makers within the team, typically the leaders of the team, enhance the opportunities for the preferred culture to emerge. Using the above discussion regarding the importance of connection amongst team members, this can realized through activities and opportunities for team members to connect both during craft specific activities as well as outside of these situations. It is important for all members of the team to feel the sense of connection so that they can feel free and able to articulate their ideas and opinions, provide feedback at appropriate times, and in particular experience social interaction and engagement, such that the presence of the various members of the team becomes a strong cue towards anchored and grounded states.
Within all team dynamics, whether by design or through natural emergence, there are leaders which will be present. It is important that the principles of developing the optimal culture are articulated and supported by these individuals. This provides guidance towards the development of culture from a top down perspective. Ultimately, however, the nature of culture emerges from the bottom up. Whether or not the leaders of a team are intending to foster a particular culture, or not, it is often the case that the ultimate nature of the culture which develops is that which is embodied and demonstrated on a consistent basis by all members of the team. From another perspective, it is not possible to dictate or impose, in a top down fashion, the nature of the culture. Rather the elements to foster emergence of the ideal culture can be created and cultivated and then the opportunity provided for the culture to emerge.
As summarized above and described in more detail in the previous article, in order for a culture to be robust, it must also be authentic. This requires that the elements and characteristics of the culture not be dictated from an authoritarian perspective. Rather, the attributes and characteristics of the culture must naturally emerge from the team itself. This allows all members of the team to buy in and embody the culture, thereby bringing it to life and simultaneously strengthening it.
Within high consequence and high demand domains, including competitive and professional sports, a hierarchical structure is necessary for decision making. Without such a structure, it can become chaotic when decisions have to be made, particularly under time constraints and within pressured situations. This requirement for hierarchical decision making, however, does not necessarily detract from the degree of connection amongst team members. Nor does it undermine the ability of team members to speak their mind, provide their opinions, and give feedback at appropriate times. Rather, the ideal culture and its attributes noted above can exist in the presence of a hierarchical decision making structure. When appropriate, input from all members of the team is obtained and supported. When necessary, given the constraints of high pressure situations, the identified decision makers must perform their role. It is particularly important for these decision makers to be accountable for the decisions that they make and open to feedback from all members of the team. In fact, this process of being accountable and open to feedback further fosters connection amongst all members of the team.
It is important to note that while the nature and characteristics of the ideal culture have been described above, it is not always the case that this is what emerges within a team. There are numerous examples throughout competitive and professional sports, as well as within other non-sports domains, of scenarios in which the decision makers and leaders of a team may have thought that the ideal culture existed. Perhaps an attempt was made to foster or, even, enforce such a culture. Ultimately, if a different culture occurred then it is that which naturally emerged within the team that will be the dominant and true culture experienced by all members of the team. In addition, if the ideal culture, including connection amongst team members has been created, but under high-pressure situations the decision makers within the team are not accountable or open to feedback, this can cause significant rifts and fracture the previously strong culture.
As noted in the past article on the importance of culture, the characteristics and nature of the culture which emerges are not static. In essence, this is a living and breathing element within ourselves and within our teams. As such, it is entirely possible for the nature and characteristics of the culture to shift and change in response to the experiences we encounter. This can occur in both positive and negative directions. An important consideration with respect to the dynamic nature of culture is the importance of regularly identifying and acknowledging the emerging attributes of the culture. It is hoped that over time the culture will strengthen and improve. This is supported through connection amongst all members of the team for the reasons discussed above. An important strategy to foster such a positive evolution and culture over time is to ensure repeated opportunities for all members of the team to interact and engage such that the degree of connection amongst the team remains strong over time.
While the emphasis of this discussion has been competitive and professional sports, the benefit of the characteristics and attributes of culture described above apply equally outside of sports. This includes within our friend groups and families. This can also strongly influence and impact our pursuit of health and wellbeing. As this pursuit is based upon strengthening anchored and grounded states and returning to such states following shifts into protective and defensive states, any element, including culture, which is supportive of maintaining anchored and grounded states is supportive of this pursuit.
To learn more, including about biologically complementary coaching for healthcare professionals and others in high demand domains, please visit www.darindavidson.com.
Dr. Darin Davidson partners with Learner+, a CME/CE reflective learning platform for healthcare providers. For the opportunity to reflect on this article and earn CME/CE credits, Launch here. Check out all past articles which are also eligible for reflections and CME/CE credits.
For downloadable, actionable strategies and tactics to leverage biology in the pursuit of health, wellbeing, and sustainable high performance, visit the resource store, Launch here. Chapters are arranged by topic so those of interest can be selected and each are also eligible for reflections and CME/CE credits through Learner+.