Culture is not how many Slack channels full of kittens we have. Nor is it pool tables, cafeterias, or nap pods.

Culture is simply the habits, language, and behavior we produce on a regular basis.

It is a set of shared opinions and values that guide our thoughts and decision-making. It’s what we are able to assume of each other to a reliable level of accuracy and consistency. It’s also what we can assume of the company itself.

Being a Remote First company, it’s important to be even more explicit about our culture. It’s not something we’re able to see on a daily basis in and around the office. We don’t get together after work for drinks and talk about (the good and bad) of work and develop a shared mind on what’s going on. There is also no real-time reaction to the things we do and don’t.

It is important to document our culture.

The most foundational layers of our culture come from Tofugu’s Values.

The second layer of culture, which focuses more on practical application of our values, comes from Tofugu’s Principles. These principles help us to work and act in ways that are consistent with our values, connecting them to what we do on a daily basis. They are mental models and thought processes that everyone can use—and rely on others to use—which creates that familiarity and consistency across the entire company and teams.

Culture also requires reinforcement. We can’t just expect it to happen. That means developing our processes, creating policies, and supporting actions that follow our values and principles.

In the end, our culture is simply a sum of our actions. It’s what we all do.

“Our culture” is a skill that anybody can learn. Some people will be more predisposed to be in line with it due to their current beliefs and personalities—and we do actively attempt to find and hire people who are already a good part of the way there—but as long as we think of our culture as something that can be learned, we can move toward a stronger and more unified culture here at Tofugu.

Finally, it’s important to note that culture does change. Principles can change too. That’s all part of the process. You can question culture. You can question principles. Our goal is to develop a culture that helps us to make progress toward our goals in an effective and unified way.