Crazy Recipe for Business and Personal Success is actually paraphrased from Kevin and Jackie Freiberg's bestselling book, Nuts! Southwest Airlines' Crazy Recipe for Business and Personal Success.   I had the opportunity to hear Karen at a Red Cross conference in New Orleans several years ago.  The book is the remarkable story of the country's most successful airline and Herb Kelleher, the CEO.  

If you remember, the airlines suffered great loss after September 11, with the exception of one, Southwest.  No matter what you think about their current PR crisis, (a female passenger being accused of being too scantily dressed and being ask to cover up or leave) the book Nuts! offers the philosophy behind one of the most successful companies in the United States.   I have picked up the book once again to review Kelleher's successful business and personal practices. 

I'll set the tone by beginning with an examination of Part III of the book~ corporate culture.  The Freibergs point out that Culture is the most precious thing that a company has, so you must work harder at it than at anything else. In any organization, culture is the present manifestation of the past.   In all organizations, formal and informal values, philosophies and norms interact and overlap to create the fabric we call the "culture."   Values are deep-seated beliefs about the world and how it operates.  They go on to say that how you spend your money and your time tells a lot about what you value. 

What is the fabric of your company?  How do you spend your money and your time?

As I examine part three further, the Freibergs point out that Southwest has never written down the principles of their character, but in the research and writing for their book, they identified 13 corporate characteristics or core values, and over the next few articles, I will examine some of those individually, but for now I will just briefly list them. 

Profitability- Most of the 25,000 employees believe it is essential

Low Cost- Makes it affordable for those who previous could not fly to do so

Family- Southwest believes treating employees like family you build strong relationships and you make work fun

Fun- employees are encouraged to take their work seriously, not themselves

Love- employees are encouraged to extend patience, forgiveness and kindness to customers and other employees. Work in a loving manner

Hard Work- work is fast pace and intense. Requires concentration and strong work ethic

Individuality- Employees are free to be themselves

Ownership-People take better care of the things that they own

Legendary Service -customers experience service that makes a long lasting impression

Egalitarianism- The ultimate fight is for the common person

Common Sense/Good Judgment- Southwest believes in its employees and it expects them to use common sense and good judgment on the job

Simplicity-  it creates speed, reduces cost and fosters understanding

Altruism- Southwest employees freely demonstrate their love for others, their customers and for their communities through countless acts of goodwill


What do your company's core values look like?

There is much more to examine such as the norms, values and philosophy, but I will leave that to another time.  I will, however, end with one other passage found in the book.  

The legend and the love, the vision and the values, the philosophies and the principles mixed with Kelleher's own words, "boundless energy, immense goodwill, and a burning desire to excel,"  are known in the company as the Spirit of Southwest. "Spirit is engaging our minds and our hearts and our souls to do the right thing. Southwest Spirit is you."