Page 154 - Make Work Great

Growing Your Crystal

Third, avoid preaching. You may be tempted to extol the virtues
of your new behaviors to a broad audience. Avoid this inclination!
Dogmatism doesn’t promote organic growth; in fact, it is counter to
it. At best, if you’re a powerful fi gure, it produces blind conformity.
At worst, it produces nothing but confl ict and turns its most vocal
proponents into targets.
Finally, accept nonlinear progress. If you expect that today you’ll
see a teeny change, a slightly larger one tomorrow, a still-larger change
the next day, and so forth, you’ll be disappointed. Organic processes

develop in fits and starts. Visible plant growth is nonlinear, and lakes
don’t freeze from left to right in 10 percent increments. What you’re
more likely to see is prolonged periods of little visible change followed
by bursts of improvement.
It is no accident that these four strategies would work equally well
under the heading of “practicing good habits.” As we close this sec-
tion about growing your crystal, take a moment to notice once again
that your practice of good cultural habits is the key to your success
at creating growth and making work great. Whether you are col-
laborating with receptive individuals, handling diffi cult people, or
dealing with the pressures of your life on the cultural boundary, the
consistent and effective application of overtness about task and clar-
ity within relationship is the key to your success.
Add to that a little patience, and the rest will follow naturally.

Existing on the Boundary Between Cultures

• Don’t expect too much too soon.

• Keep track of your growing crystal.

• Avoid preaching or dogmatism.
• Accept nonlinear progress.

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