Building a Solid Foundation for Disruption

Starting something new—whether it’s a business, a project, or a team—is exciting. It shakes things up, disrupts the usual way of doing things, and opens the door for big possibilities. But here’s the thing: no matter how bold your vision is, success depends on having a strong foundation. Without it, everything else can fall apart.

I was reminded of this during a meeting with a small, ambitious team. Nine crowded into a room, and I took the tenth chair. They had already done the hard stuff—clarified their vision, secured support, and built a team of brilliant engineers and researchers ready to make a huge impact in the energy industry.

But they knew that wasn’t enough.

The founder kicked off the meeting by saying, “We’re growing fast—30 people in six months fast. This group is going to set the tone for the whole company, and we need to get our culture right.”

So, we talked about what it takes to build a foundation strong enough to handle growth, challenges, and disruption.

Getting the Foundation Right

Think about building a house. You can have the best design and the most skilled team, but the structure will be shaky if the foundation isn’t solid. The same is true for any team or organization.

Your foundation comes down to four key questions:

Mission: What do we do?
Purpose: Why are we doing it?
Vision: Where are we going?
Values: How will we act along the way?

Most teams do okay with the first three, but values? That’s where the cracks usually show.

The Values Trap

There are two common pitfalls when it comes to values:

The Laundry List: People get tired after hashing out mission, purpose, and vision, so they throw together a list of good-sounding words—“trust, loyalty, communication, collaboration”—and call it done.
No Behavior Translation: Even when the right words are chosen, teams often stop short of explaining what those values look like in action.

Without clarity, you’re left with frustration. It’s like asking someone to “clean up” without explaining what “clean” means. Everyone has their own idea, and it leads to confusion and unmet expectations.

Making Values Work

If you want values to drive your team’s culture, you’ve got to go beyond just listing them. Here’s how:

Define behaviors. If “collaboration” is a value, what does that actually mean? Does it look like weekly team check-ins, open brainstorming, or shared decision-making? Spell it out.
Lead by example. Show the behaviors you want to see and celebrate when others do the same.
Keep them front and center. Talk about values regularly—at meetings, during feedback, and when recognizing great work.

A Foundation for Any Kind of Disruption

This doesn’t just apply to start-ups. Whether you’re growing a business, starting a new team, or taking on a big project, disruption works best when it’s built on a strong foundation. Your mission, purpose, vision, and values are what keep things steady when everything else is in motion.

The real question is: Are you building something solid enough to handle what comes next?

Make it a great day!

Patrick

#disruptevertyhing #values #disruption