What my dog taught me about team culture

We have unintentionally trained our dog, Ollie.

We take off his collar every night, and we only put it back on when we are ready to take him for his daily walk. So, every time we put on his collar, he loses his mind with excitement because to him, the collar means it's time to walk. 

He becomes quite disappointed when we put on his collar and don't take him out right away.  

We didn’t plan it that way. We never sat down and said, “Let’s create a training program around collar-related emotional spikes.” It just happened, over time, without us thinking about it.   

But here’s the leadership insight: If we’re not intentionally training our people, we’re still training them.  

Whether you mean to or not, your team is picking up on cues about how things work around the office.  

• They’re learning what’s celebrated, what’s tolerated, and what gets ignored.  

• They’re watching how decisions are made, how conflict is handled, and what happens when someone fails.    

Culture is shaped either by design or by default.  

At work and at home.  

So, intentional development and people planning are vital to a healthy culture. It’s not about micromanaging or controlling. It’s about creating consistent, clear rhythms of growth so your people are equipped to lead themselves well and do their jobs.   

If you lead people, ask yourself:  

• What is your team being trained to believe about their job or environment without you realizing it?  

• What have your people accidentally learned simply by watching you?  

• What would change if you began leading them with purpose instead of assumption?  

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I’d love to explore your answers to those questions and how I could serve you and your team. If you're ready to grow your people with intention, build a culture that scales, and lead with clarity, contact Tina.