No One Cares About Your Culture Deck

Let’s play a game.

Without looking it up, can you remember the core values listed in your company’s culture deck?

(Exactly.)

Here’s the thing: Culture isn’t what you write.

It’s what people expect from each other when no one’s watching.

It’s how you handle feedback.

It’s whether people feel safe saying “I don’t know.”

It’s how the team treats the new person on their second day.

It’s whether leadership apologizes when they mess up.

Those daily moments? That is your culture.

Culture decks, value posters, even offsite retreats - they’re fine. But they don’t build culture.

They describe it. (Or worse, they try to advertise something that doesn’t exist.)

So what actually shapes team culture?

Here’s the short answer: Behaviors that get repeated.

And the longer answer:
Culture is the patterns people learn to expect. From each other, and especially from you.

If showing vulnerability is rewarded with support (not punishment), that becomes the culture.

If decisions are made in secret, and credit is hoarded, that becomes the culture.

Want to change your culture? Don’t start with a slogan.

Start by modeling what you want repeated - consistently, and in public.

TL;DR:

You don’t need a culture deck.
You need better habits, practiced in daylight.