Eat Your Own Dog Food: A Winning Principle That Builds Better Teams

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Mark Calitri speaking on leadership

Some of the best business lessons come from the strangest places.

One of the best I've ever heard is this:

Eat your own dog food.

It sounds ridiculous until you understand what it means.

Don't expect others to do something you're not willing to do yourself.

If you expect your team to be prepared, be the most prepared person in the room.

If you expect your team to work hard, they ought to see you working even harder.

If you expect everyone to be on time, don't let them beat you to the office.

If you expect people to own their mistakes, own yours first.

People pay far more attention to what you do than what you say.

That's how respect is earned.

That's how winning cultures are built.

Performance starts with the example you set every day.

That's what "eat your own dog food" means.

I'm curious. What's one standard you refuse to compromise?

Watch Mark Calitri explain how preparation, effort and setting the right example can improve team performance. YouTube: https://youtu.be/PtFbOZDOnIM

— Mark Calitri

Mark Calitri shares practical ideas on performance, accountability, teamwork and building organizations that produce results.

Watch more videos and articles at MarkCalitri.com and follow Mark on YouTube, LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok, Pinterest and X.

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