Food for thought, pun intended, about culture and the American work ethic

I've never doubted that HR and culture references are woven into our every day lives but I admit I was surprised when my Department of Salad substack newsletter — a fabulous source of inspirational recipes so that you will never have to eat a boring salad again — ventured into both of those territories. The insightful post by Emily Nunn opened with these comments about American work culture:

"PERSISTENCE IS CONSIDERED an unqualified virtue, especially in the United States, where we practically invented working yourself to death and then bragging about it from your deathbed. I gave it my all! Literally! The end."

"So our culture often seems like one big inspirational Human Resources poster, urging us to keep our noses forever to the grindstone (what the hell?), even when the only reason to do so is to avoid getting fired."

Emily Nunn's post goes on to provide context and cultural references many of us Gen X folks will recognize, including this one referencing the Mars Rover:

"What if we gave ourselves permission to be more like a Rover: to stand very still and turn our faces toward the sun when we need to. Close the laptop. Eat in bed. Cry in a closet."

Your employees are tired, tired of being the sandwich generation, tired of fighting to get good health care and reasonably priced insurance, tired of being bombarded by social media and divisive posts, tired of so many competing responsibilities — and they are definitely tired of working "lean" with staff missing from their departments and no new hires since the pandemic.

Throwing money at the problem is usually a temporary fix. A boost in salary is a temporary good will gesture; it helps but becomes the proverbial drop in the bucket when the next set of bills arrive. Culture is the key to providing people with a place they want to be at, at least some of the time, as American workers spend more time with their co-workers than with their families. Culture requires listening, not talking.

Think about your workplace culture — and think about subscribing to Emily Nunn's substack so you too can make one of her fabulous salads!