The Rules, Being South African and Seizing the Moment
- PG Geldenhuys
- May 6
- 3 min read
Updated: May 7
My boys are too young to watch the Marvel movies.
It creates a conundrum for me. I love those movies. I love superheroes. They love superheroes. The perfect opportunity exists for some incredible rainy-day bonding between father and sons, watching Spider Man and Captain America take down the bad guys.
The movies, of course, are age-restricted because of the violence (and occasional swearing). So when Caroline hits high agitation levels at my choice of media, it is valid.
The answer? Just do it in a controlled environment when she’s not around.
At least, that’s my story and I’m sticking to it.
It made me think of a frequent conversation I have with my clients: How can we ensure our employees are doing the right things the right way when we’re not around? How can we create a culture that doesn’t require constant supervision or micromanagement?
I’ve got thoughts on this. Creating a strict outcome-based environment is a start, where clearly defined metrics are assigned to the responsible areas of the team or individual. Crafting smaller teams or pods where they hold each other accountable to those outcomes helps, and assigning the right behavioural incentives is a must.
Also, being aligned on the cultural framework - i.e. the underlying why of the organisation and the core values that people subscribe to - is critical.
We have family values systems set up, and they trump artificial restrictions set on us by the people who decide movie age classifications. It doesn’t mean Caroline and I agree on the micro-detail, but it does mean I can defend my position in terms of our values set.
And it feels very South African. We have some stupid rules in this country. Getting a vehicle registered for tourism transport purposes requires you to navigate a complex bureaucratic hell of red tape that eats up time, money and resources. What an extraordinary bottleneck that ensures only the big companies really bother, and a thousand small entrepreneurs are blocked from legally entering the marketplace. I am still surrounded by a number of people who make a plan, though - who have figured out the system and how to play it. But it requires resilience, inventiveness and an extraordinary amount of planning. These are all qualities that we have in abundance as a country.
You have to. Being South African means all of the above things… but it is also an incredibly diverse place, where there are a million cultural subsets. So we work within our tribal cultural framework, but adhere to the larger cultural context. Same same but different, which is why it all works. Kind of. The friction comes in when the powers that be dictate rules that are in contrast with our values.
So ask yourself the question: Are you clear on the values that drive your organisation, and do your rules, incentives and processes align with those values?
PG’s Pro Tip:
If you’re not clear on your values alignment, go to ChatGPT and ask it the following: The core values for our organisation are the following… and the way we incentivise and reward teams and individuals is as follows… Do they match up, and what do you suggest we can do to improve?
Upcoming Workshop: Bottleneck Breakthrough
Date: 13 May 2025
Time: 9am - 11am
Location: Online
Join us for a powerful 2-hour virtual workshop where we’ll unpack how to turn your industry’s biggest challenges into your greatest competitive advantage.
Spots Available: Only 2 left!
Pricing: R1 000 per person
Secure Your Spot → 🔗 Register Now
Comments