Okay, I fully admit that I really don’t know much about farming, and I’m relying more on a stylized/truck-commercial-version of farming, but bear with me here.

A lot of organizations seem to put off the work of creating an intentional and strong culture. Their conclusion is that it’s too hard or that they don’t really know how to do it. While those two statements may be true, they are actually very poor excuses, and the farming comparison sheds some light on that.

Creating a strong and intentional culture is like farming. We know what needs to be done, we just need to get up early, roll our sleeves up, and do the actual work. There is certainly some specialized and technical information you need in order to do farming right (same with culture), but it’s not particularly a mystery. Just learn what you need to learn and get to it. Beyond that you need the discipline, hard work, and patience to turn earth and seeds into food (or to create a strong culture).

If you’re not willing to learn crop science and get up early to do work, then don’t own a farm. So, if you’re not willing to learn about culture and devote time and energy to creating a workplace that people love, then don’t lead an organization.

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