“I think that culture has always been there […] There are two fish swimming in a pond, and a bigger fish swims past them and says, “How's the water?”. And when he swims away, the fish look at each other and say, “What's water?” […] Culture is always there. It's always around you. You can feel it, but you don't even realize you're in it.” S01E11 of the Rethink Culture podcast shines the spotlight on Miren Oca, the visionary behind the Ocaquatics swim school in Miami, a business whose primary customers are its own employees and for whom culture is the real competitive advantage. Listen to find out:- How Miren founded Ocaquatics when her life took an unexpected turn at 19.- How growing up in a restaurant shaped Miren’s commitment to customer service and her passion to teach people- What makes Ocaquatics' hiring process unique, and Miren’s worst firing mistake- Why Ocaquatics is not a family but a high performance sports team- The Leadership Ocademy, providing leadership skills like meditation, financial literacy, and soft skills like emotional literacy.- Why it’s important to really be intentional about the kind of culture that you want- What steps Ocaquatics took to attain their B Corp Certification, failing first before succeeding- How Miren and her team turned a one-star Google review into a wealth of five-star feedback while having lots of fun- The long term commitment to culture: “we want to have such a great business that you would want your children to work with us” Further references:- Miren Oca on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/miren-oca-80561261/- Ocaquatics: https://www.ocaquatics.com/ Books referenced:- "Delivering Happiness" by Tony Hsieh: https://www.amazon.com/Delivering-Happiness-Profits-Passion-Purpose/dp/0446576220- "The E-Myth Revisited" by Michael Gerber: https://www.amazon.com/Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses-About/dp/0887307280- "Integrity" by Henry Cloud: https://www.amazon.com/Integrity-Courage-Meet-Demands-Reality/dp/006084969X- "Atomic Habits" by James Clear: https://www.amazon.com/Atomic-Habits-Proven-Build-Break/dp/0735211299- "The Infinite Game" by Simon Sinek: https://www.amazon.com/Infinite-Game-Simon-Sinek/dp/073521350X