What’s Tolerated And What’s Celebrated?

Scott O’Neill is a near household name in the Philly/New Jersey sports world. As the CEO of Harris Blitzer Sports and Entertainment, he leads the 76ers, the Devils, the Prudential Center, and more. Since I’m clearly on a culture kick lately, this quote from him really caught my attention.

O’Neill says,

Culture is primarily what you tolerate and what you celebrate. Secondarily it’s how you get things done.

We see groups get into trouble when they get too focused on the “getting things done” part, and too light on what they tolerate and celebrate. O’Neill puts these in the right order.

Look around, take in what’s being tolerated and what’s being celebrated. That can tell you a ton about a culture.

And, if you want to build, shape, or fix a culture – what’s tolerated and what’s celebrated are a great place to start.