I have been giving thought to leadership recently, especially attempting to attempt to understand more about what goes into creating a culture.  The definition of a culture is often considered to be “the way we do things around here”.

Cultures are built over time. They’re the result of action, reaction, and truth. They are nuanced, beautiful, and authentic. Real culture is like patina, the film or acquired change of a surface through age and exposure.

Blogger George Ambler suggests here that the way a culture organizes itself can often be a a reflection of the leader. Culture can also be understood as “the shadow of the leader”. 

Consider the following quote from the summer 2009 edition of the Leadership Journal (published by Christianity Today.) “Your staff culture has to represent the culture you’re trying to create in the wider church. That’s one of the biggest misses in contemporary church work. You have a business-run, top-down, bottom-line culture yet you’re trying to bring around a loving, transformative culture in your community. It just doesn’t work.”

Therefore, some of “the way we do things around here”  becomes defined over time by
  > How leaders allocate time and attention
  > How leaders react to critical incidents and organizational crises
  > How leaders supervise from recruitment through support to closure.

What sort of shadow are you casting upon the culture of your family or environment?