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Hey there - it's Brian 👋

Every weekend, I call a founder friend to share our business problems.

She’s building a SaaS.

She’d kill me if I told you what it is.

So let’s call her “Sara.”

Sara’s business has a line out the door for customers. Her business is amazing.

Anyway.

On Sunday we ranted for THREE HOURS about one problem both had.

How do we get our teams rowing in the same direction?

Her story:
➟ One person communicates less than she wants.
➟ One person is less direct with his team.
➟ One person isn’t prioritizing speed.

So what we decided:

She needs a cultural reset.

This issue is for you if you need the people you work with all on the same page.

Let’s make your business an outlier: 👇

For my friends: What’s going on with Brian?

I landed in Peru!

I’m writing to you from a coffee shop in Lima.

Food is incredible.

If you haven’t tried Peruvian food order it tonight.

Now on to how to lead your teams: 👇

What does your business value?

A business is just a group of people working to solve a problem.

So if each person rows the boat in a slightly different direction, you’re dysfunctional.

You have to be very intentional the people you let into your boat.

Hire people who believe in your mission. Train them to row together.

Hire + train.

So in Sara’s case, she’s the captain of her boat.

So it’s her responsibility to clarify how they work together. Communicate it. Make sure everyone lives up to it.

Sara’s problem:

Until today, she’s been letting smart people into her business.

But she hasn’t figured out HOW they work together:

Does she need transparency (constant communication) or does she want deep work (light communication)?

Does she need radical candor? Or is she more careful about emotions?

Does she need speed? Or slow and make sure every detail is perfect?

Every company is different. But there is ONE wrong answer…

Not being intentional. Having a bit of everything.

Then nothing functions well.

So this week, Sara’s designing her values.

Starting with speed and communication.

Then doing a culture reset to make sure everyone rows together.

How?

Write out what you value.

Make sure every person who enters your boat lives those values.

Hold people to those values with KPIs.

So what does your business value?

P.S. If you only take ONE thing from this email it’s this:
If you don’t tie your values to results that your customers actually experience, then values are fluffy and meaningless.

P.P.S. this is the best video I’ve seen on building values and tying it to results.

🧔🏻‍♂️ Brian’s nerdy side rant:
You want everyone to have the same core values. But…

You want diversity of thought. Diversity of skill.

Cohesive as a team. But think different.

How you make it actionable:
Core Values → Brand Promise → KPIs

1) Core Values:
What traits are important to your business?
(Internal)

How should everyone in your boat be rowing?

Every person who walks in your door NEEDs to embody these values. Or your business falls apart.

2) Brand Promise:
How will customers experience your values?
(External)

Explain the lesson.

3) KPIs:
How will you hold your talent responsible to hit these values?

🧔🏻‍♂️ Brian’s nerdy side rant:
Rules have a limit. What’s wrong with SOPs?

There’s a HUGE limiter to SOPs and processes (i.e., “rules”).

Values are like having a moral compass. Rules are like the country having laws.

You need both.

Rules don’t cover everything.

A few problems:

1) What happens when a situation falls outside the rules?

2) You need to get so specific you have 30 - 40 rules. Can people remember them?

When people act on values, they know the direction the company is going in and can make decisions on their own that are in line with your company’s mission.

Set the values. Values then inform the rules.

Rules get you stuck. Lead by values

Values are only “fluffy” when they’re not tied to action.

Make sure customers experience the values.

Make sure talent gets measured on delivering the values.

Values scale.

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See you next Thursday 👋

Brian
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