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Hi, this is Mark Raven. 
Welcome to episode 3, 34 of lean

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blog audio, this is opposed to 
that I published on June 22nd 

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2023 titled a workplace culture 
where fail means first attempt 

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in learning and you can find a 
link to that episode by going to

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lean blog dot org slash audio 
334. 

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There's also a link in the show 
notes So, I'm sharing here is 

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some material that I wrote, but 
didn't use in my book, the 

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mistakes that make us 
cultivating, a culture of 

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learning and Innovation Kindle 
edition. 

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Only will be released on 
Tuesday, June 27th. 

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So we're almost there tomorrow 
as I'm recording this, the print

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books, both paperback and 
hardcover are lagging a couple 

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of weeks behind, because of that
production process, taking a 

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little bit longer, but the the 
Kindle edition is almost Here. 

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Go to mistakes, book.com. 
So this material cut from the 

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book. 
Sometimes just didn't fit the 

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things don't fit the flow, not 
that it was bad. 

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I don't know, maybe it was a 
mistake to cut it, but what I'm 

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sharing here in the episode 
today, it's based on assuming 

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interactions with some Veterans 
Administration, health care 

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leaders who I met last November 
after giving a talk about 

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learning from mistakes at a VA 
regional. 

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So here's here's that material. 
What is culture? 

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Some say it's simply how we do 
things in an organization, the 

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late Edgar, Schein a famed. 
MIT Professor wrote that we can 

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observe and describe culture 
through artifacts, espoused 

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values and assumptions. 
So an artifact from a Veterans 

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Administration health care. 
Cite one example of an artifact 

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is a small card that was given 
to me by a US veterans Health 

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Administration site leader who's
working to build or cultivate a 

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culture of learning from 
Mistake. 

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So you can see a photo of a card
of this card in the blog post, 

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you can go to lean blog dot org 
slash audio 334 on one side. 

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The card said the holder was 
quote free to fail and the card 

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framed a fail. 
It's in all capital letters 

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there as first attempt in 
learning. 

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The card continues. 
It says this pass is to 

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encourage and empower the holder
to take a chance on one new 

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idea, process, prototype, Etc, 
without fear of failure. 

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Now, the woman who created the 
card clarified, it wasn't meant 

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to imply that the holder. 
Could just take one risk or just

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make one mistake. 
The back of the card said this 

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as we continue along our journey
to high reliability, we must 

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encourage a, no fear culture one
rooted in trust where it's safe 

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as safe to uncover when 
something falls short, as it is 

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to find a successful new way of 
doing something test. 

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Small fail, small scale large, I
love the language there. 

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The back side of the card 
emphasizes that the 

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transformation towards becoming 
a quote-unquote high. 

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Liability organization, one that
delivers high levels of physical

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safety and quality means 
encouraging. 

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Oh, no fear culture, where it's 
safe to make mistakes, as long 

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as we're learning. 
And progressing as we've 

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discussed in the book, small 
tests of change, leads a small 

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mistakes that we can learn from 
which then prevents larger 

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mistakes. 
That might be catastrophic. 

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Now, look this card, this 
artifact alone won't create 

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higher levels of psychological 
safety. 

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This card might remind people 
Oil. 

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That leaders want the culture to
be like this L cannot simply 

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mandate a culture of learning 
from mistakes into being These 

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leaders actions matter more than
the words that are said or 

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printed on a card. 
This card could be a helpful 

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reminder. 
In one organization, while it 

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might trigger eye rolling and 
another, it's helpful to see 

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artifacts, but they can't fully 
describe a culture. 

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Ensure actions are consistent 
with espoused values. 

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So, going back to shines 
definition. 

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We also need alignment to our 
espoused values and assumptions.

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And how do those lead to action?
I've suffered in workplaces 

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where leaders said quality and 
Innovation were essential but 

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their actions proved otherwise 
Under Pressure, these leaders 

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pushed quantity over quality. 
They told employees to speak up 

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with ideas but ignored them or 
worse. 

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They shot the messenger for 
daring to suggest. 

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Things could be improved. 
One time, I remember sitting in 

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the waiting room for an 
outpatient MRI, I was a patient 

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and a sign in the lobby, proudly
stated their organizational 

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values. 
Including it said, quote, we 

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engage everyone in continuous 
Improvement. 

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Well, that caught my eye, 
considering the work I do to 

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help build and cultivate 
cultures of continuous 

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Improvement. 
I asked the one when working the

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front desk about this engagement
and continuous Improvement. 

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Her response was both kind of a 
blank stare and an eye roll. 

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I mean where they really living 
those stated values maybe maybe 

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not. 
So psychological safety, expert 

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Timothy are Clark who kindly 
endorsed my book defines culture

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in a more action-oriented way he
describes it as how we interact 

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with each other. 
Some interactions help toward 

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this culture of learning from 
mistakes and others do not other

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interactions. 
Do. 

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Not some interactions actively 
tear down this culture, even if 

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unintentional as Clark points 
out every team or organization 

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has a culture, the question is, 
if we're actively creating the 

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culture or cultivating it or 
not, we can actively cultivate a

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culture of learning from 
mistakes and needs intent and 

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needs action. 
So as I discussed in my book, I 

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hope I make the case that the 
pathway to fewer mistakes, zero 

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harm and organizational success 
comes from shifting away from 

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punitive and fear-driven 
interactions to those that are 

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instead kind and constructive, 
it's not about being nice. 

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But being helpful that sometimes
means challenging people to 

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improve and working with them 
instead of looking the other way

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or just consoling, somebody 
about a mistake being quote, 

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unquote, free to fail means, 
we'll be able to learn and 

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improve which reduces the number
of failures over time. 

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So I'm curious. 
What do you experience in your 

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workplace? 
Do you feel free to fail and are

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you supported in efforts to 
prevent mistakes and failures? 

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How do you or leaders respond 
when mistakes and failures 

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occur? 
What would you like to see 

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change? 
So to learn more. 

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If you'd like to comment, if you
want to see the card links to my

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book and more, go to lean blog 
dot org, slash audio 334. 

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Thanks