by Steve Black
We’ve lived in the Rocky Mountains for the last 10 years. As we spend more time in the High Country – and when I go on my daily walks or sit out on the deck enjoying the views of the snowcapped Rocky Mountains and the sea of green pine trees stretching as far as the eye can see – I’ve noticed something.
It can be a calm day, and then you hear something. At first, it tickles the ears like the buzz of a distant bee, then it grows louder. It almost sounds like a car coming up our gravelly dirt road. But where we live, we don’t have a lot of road traffic or noise.
First, you hear it. Then, within a few seconds, you feel it. And then you can see the effects of it as it goes by. Pine trees are particularly good at amplifying the sound of the wind because of their dense needle structure, which can create a more pronounced rustling noise compared to other types of trees.
The reason we hear the wind in the pine trees before we feel it and see its effects is due to the way sound travels compared to the movement of air. Sound travels faster than the wind itself.
When the wind blows through the pine trees needles and branches, it creates a rustling sound. This sound travels to our ears at the speed of sound, which is about 343 meters per second (1,125 feet per second) in air.
On the other hand, the actual movement of the wind through the pine needles and branches takes longer to arrive, especially if we’re some distance away.
The connection of the “whispering” pines to the culture in our businesses is pretty amazing.
First, you hear about it
- Word of mouth: Friends, family or acquaintances who have worked at the company can share their experiences.
- Online reviews: Websites like Google, Glassdoor and Indeed often have reviews from current and former employees detailing their experiences.
- Social media: Companies often share their culture on platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter (X).
- Company website: Many companies highlight their values, mission and work environment on their official websites.
- News articles: Media coverage can provide insights into a company’s culture, especially if there have been notable events or achievements.
Second, you feel it
- Work environment: The physical setup, whether it’s open-plan or has private offices, and the overall atmosphere.
- Communication style: How colleagues and managers communicate, whether it’s formal or informal, and the frequency of meetings.
- Team dynamics: The level of collaboration, support and camaraderie among team members.
- Leadership approach: How approachable and supportive the leadership is, as well as their management style.
- Values in action: How the company’s stated values and mission are reflected in everyday actions and decisions.
- Work-life balance: The emphasis on balancing work with personal life, including flexibility and support for employees’ well-being.
Third, you see the effects of it
- Employee retention: How many colleagues have stayed or left and the reasons behind their decisions.
- Career growth: Opportunities for advancement, professional development and how promotions are handled.
- Work relationships: The strength and quality of relationships with colleagues and managers.
- Company policies: How policies are implemented and whether they align with the company’s stated values.
- Job satisfaction: How our own level of satisfaction and motivation has evolved over time.
- Performance and feedback: The effectiveness of performance reviews and the feedback culture.
- Adaptability to change: How the company handles changes, challenges and new initiatives.
All of these elements are the ingredients of a company’s culture. And we’ve all seen the definition of culture by Bill Marklein: “Culture is how employees’ hearts and stomachs feel about Monday morning – on a Sunday night.”
Now to link this together with one of my life lessons in my book. As a leader, we always have to be the calm voice in the room.
“Whispering pines” often refers to the gentle, soothing sound that wind makes as it moves through pine trees. This phrase is commonly used in literature and music to evoke a sense of peace, tranquility and connection with nature.
The sound of the wind rustling through the pine needles can be quite calming and often is associated with serene, natural settings.
As a leader, we are making sounds as we go about our day, as well as with all our connections. We can all learn how critical it is to create a culture of peace, tranquility and connection with our teams, just like the “whispering” pines do.
This doesn’t mean that things can’t get a little loud or exciting at times. We get gusts of 50-90 mph regularly in Colorado – and that causes a lot of loud noise and some damage. Tree branches break, pine needles fly, deck chairs rearrange themselves and sometimes a 50-foot-tall pine tree will thud to the ground.
The flurry of busy and challenging times at work is normal, but it is up to us as leaders to keep the chaos from getting out of hand and bring it back down to a normal whisper.
Another really cool connection we get to experience is that Whispering Pines is the name of the little mountain church we attend. This church most definitely evokes a sense of peace, tranquility and a spiritual connection with nature.
We’ve all heard throughout our careers that people don’t quit companies, they quit leaders. We’ve also heard throughout our careers that we are in the people business.
So, the challenge for myself and all of us is to make sure we aren’t the reason people leave our companies. We should be the reason they want to stay.
As we always keep people first, we can evoke a sense of peace, tranquility and connection with them using this lesson. Be the whispering pine in your organization – and at home.
Steve Black is CEO and founder of abrighterday.life, a business and leadership coaching organization devoted to helping people and companies with personal growth and implementing simple leadership principles. A 47-year-veteran of the retail grocery arena, Black is the author of “The 5 Rules” and offers an online Masterclass.
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