Our Philosophies

Our ISMs

The culture at Rocket Innovation Studio is based on Rocket Companies' 16 philosophies that we call ISMs. Pronounced iz-emz, these sayings are the core principles that drive all our decision-making and unite us around a culture of excellence. They are who we are, not what we do.


Always raising our level of awareness.

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<p>As renowned baseball player Yogi Berra once said, “You can see a lot just by looking.” Keep your head up. Look. Be curious. Notice what is actually happening around you. Really notice. Listen. Listen to your clients. In fact, listen to everyone. Everything starts with awareness. Being alert. Being awake. Tuning into the frequency. It is a perpetual choice to both stay aware and raise your level of awareness. Success starts with the thousands of eyeballs of our team members. That's you.</p>

As renowned baseball player Yogi Berra once said, “You can see a lot just by looking.” Keep your head up. Look. Be curious. Notice what is actually happening around you. Really notice. Listen. Listen to your clients. In fact, listen to everyone. Everything starts with awareness. Being alert. Being awake. Tuning into the frequency. It is a perpetual choice to both stay aware and raise your level of awareness. Success starts with the thousands of eyeballs of our team members. That's you.


Obsessed with finding a better way.

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<p>Our never-ending quest is to find a better way for everything we do. This isn't something we wait to do until we magically “find the time.” Instead, we're eager to jump into new ideas with a mindset of curiosity and possibility. Our heart beats faster for the “yes” side of life. We're all about seeing the big picture and tapping into the limitless potential of our team members. This is the land of yes before no. If something is just meh, let's make it better. If it's good, let's aim for greatness. And if it's great, let's strive to make it extraordinary. Don't settle for less. In fact, don't settle at all. Finding a better way is our priority, our passion, our way of living…our obsession.</p>

Our never-ending quest is to find a better way for everything we do. This isn't something we wait to do until we magically “find the time.” Instead, we're eager to jump into new ideas with a mindset of curiosity and possibility. Our heart beats faster for the “yes” side of life. We're all about seeing the big picture and tapping into the limitless potential of our team members. This is the land of yes before no. If something is just meh, let's make it better. If it's good, let's aim for greatness. And if it's great, let's strive to make it extraordinary. Don't settle for less. In fact, don't settle at all. Finding a better way is our priority, our passion, our way of living…our obsession.


You'll see it when you believe it.

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<p>We lead with our <strong>hearts and minds</strong>. We take the opposite approach to, “I'll believe it when I see it.” Nothing significant in this world has ever happened without someone believing in it first. We know that when we believe in our ability to impact the outcome, we dramatically increase our odds of success. If we <strong>believe</strong> it can happen, it will.</p>

We lead with our hearts and minds. We take the opposite approach to, “I'll believe it when I see it.” Nothing significant in this world has ever happened without someone believing in it first. We know that when we believe in our ability to impact the outcome, we dramatically increase our odds of success. If we believe it can happen, it will.


The inches we need are everywhere around us.

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<p>If a company does one big thing better than their competition, it becomes easier for their competition to level the playing field: They can just imitate that one thing. If a company does thousands of little things better than anyone else, they become nearly impossible to imitate. We call those thousands of little things “inches.” We drive a culture that motivates our team members to find the inches we need all around us. We are all empowered to find the opportunities to make an impact everywhere; one inch at a time. These inches all add up to greatness.</p>

If a company does one big thing better than their competition, it becomes easier for their competition to level the playing field: They can just imitate that one thing. If a company does thousands of little things better than anyone else, they become nearly impossible to imitate. We call those thousands of little things “inches.” We drive a culture that motivates our team members to find the inches we need all around us. We are all empowered to find the opportunities to make an impact everywhere; one inch at a time. These inches all add up to greatness.


Launch and learn.

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<p>Taking longer to make a decision doesn't increase your chances of making a better one. Perfectionism destroys innovation. Overanalyzing stifles creativity and kills ideas.</p><p>We don't fear failure. We're explorers, journeying into uncharted territory, ready to learn from every twist and turn. Instead of waiting around kicking our feet, we embrace trying new things. <strong>We fearlessly launch our products and services with the intent to iterate and improve based on real-world feedback.</strong></p><p>The best way to learn anything is by doing. Think big. Start small. Iterate fast. Launch and learn.</p>

Taking longer to make a decision doesn't increase your chances of making a better one. Perfectionism destroys innovation. Overanalyzing stifles creativity and kills ideas.

We don't fear failure. We're explorers, journeying into uncharted territory, ready to learn from every twist and turn. Instead of waiting around kicking our feet, we embrace trying new things. We fearlessly launch our products and services with the intent to iterate and improve based on real-world feedback.

The best way to learn anything is by doing. Think big. Start small. Iterate fast. Launch and learn.


Ignore the noise.

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<p>We've found it's not always skill and effort that lead to greatness. It's also the ability to ignore the noise. Noise could be from naysayers, something going wrong, sun in your eyes, ball took a bad bounce, dog ate your homework, someone cut you off on the way to work, etc. A lot of things that seem serious at first glance turn out to be just noise. Will you allow it to keep you from winning?</p><p>The noise will fluctuate in volume, but your determination to press on in spite of it (ignore it!) will make all the difference to you and our Rocket Companies. This isn't an excuse to ignore constructive criticism, it's about ignoring needless negativity. There's not a human on the planet who does not experience noise. The winners have developed an ability to ignore it and press on.</p>

We've found it's not always skill and effort that lead to greatness. It's also the ability to ignore the noise. Noise could be from naysayers, something going wrong, sun in your eyes, ball took a bad bounce, dog ate your homework, someone cut you off on the way to work, etc. A lot of things that seem serious at first glance turn out to be just noise. Will you allow it to keep you from winning?

The noise will fluctuate in volume, but your determination to press on in spite of it (ignore it!) will make all the difference to you and our Rocket Companies. This isn't an excuse to ignore constructive criticism, it's about ignoring needless negativity. There's not a human on the planet who does not experience noise. The winners have developed an ability to ignore it and press on.


Every client. Every time.

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<p>People do not care how much you know until they know how much you care. Could it be any clearer? A great company is built one relationship at a time. AMAZE every client every chance you get. We are on a relentless pursuit to create experiences that WOW. Love your team members. Love your clients. No exceptions. No excuses!</p>

People do not care how much you know until they know how much you care. Could it be any clearer? A great company is built one relationship at a time. AMAZE every client every chance you get. We are on a relentless pursuit to create experiences that WOW. Love your team members. Love your clients. No exceptions. No excuses!


Responding with a sense of urgency is the ante to play.

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<p>Time, not money, is the most valuable commodity of all. Every second counts and is an opportunity to be seized. This means we must act swiftly and decisively, knowing that hesitation or lack of proactivity can mean falling behind. This isn't just about keeping pace; it's about forging ahead.</p><p>You've got to harness the inner spark that pushes you to accomplish things in a timely and intentional manner. <strong>We respond with urgency to all forms of communication from everyone within 24 hours or faster</strong>, regardless of the outcome. We're the reliable friend who always responds, relentless in our pursuit of progress and meeting clients where they are.</p><p>There's no other way. There's no other option. How will you invest the 31,536,000 seconds you are gifted each year? Choose wisely.</p>

Time, not money, is the most valuable commodity of all. Every second counts and is an opportunity to be seized. This means we must act swiftly and decisively, knowing that hesitation or lack of proactivity can mean falling behind. This isn't just about keeping pace; it's about forging ahead.

You've got to harness the inner spark that pushes you to accomplish things in a timely and intentional manner. We respond with urgency to all forms of communication from everyone within 24 hours or faster, regardless of the outcome. We're the reliable friend who always responds, relentless in our pursuit of progress and meeting clients where they are.

There's no other way. There's no other option. How will you invest the 31,536,000 seconds you are gifted each year? Choose wisely.


It's not about who is right; it's about what is right.

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<p>There is no place at our company for typical corporate arrogance. WHO is right (or WHO is wrong) is irrelevant and inconsequential to WHAT is the right decision or best outcome for the issue at hand. All decisions should be made with a single motivation: the right or best decision for our clients, team members, and mission. Think about how much a company compromises itself by basing decisions on <strong>who</strong> is in favor or against something instead of <strong>what</strong> is the best and right decision. The <strong>what</strong> trumps the <strong>who</strong> in our shop.</p>

There is no place at our company for typical corporate arrogance. WHO is right (or WHO is wrong) is irrelevant and inconsequential to WHAT is the right decision or best outcome for the issue at hand. All decisions should be made with a single motivation: the right or best decision for our clients, team members, and mission. Think about how much a company compromises itself by basing decisions on who is in favor or against something instead of what is the best and right decision. The what trumps the who in our shop.


We are the "they."

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<p>There is no “they.” We are the “they.” United. All in the mission together. No corporate barriers. No boundaries. Just open doors, open minds, and an open culture rooted in <strong>trust</strong>. We embrace the unique and amazing parts of our culture that come from encouraging each team member to be the best version of themselves at Rocket Companies. We know that diverse ideas come from diverse voices.</p><p>Using the word “they” simply leads to a lack of empathy and blame-shifting. WE are all empowered to fix things, to be proactive, to find a solution. The most important thing is to remember we are all ONE TEAM, in this together.</p>

There is no “they.” We are the “they.” United. All in the mission together. No corporate barriers. No boundaries. Just open doors, open minds, and an open culture rooted in trust. We embrace the unique and amazing parts of our culture that come from encouraging each team member to be the best version of themselves at Rocket Companies. We know that diverse ideas come from diverse voices.

Using the word “they” simply leads to a lack of empathy and blame-shifting. WE are all empowered to fix things, to be proactive, to find a solution. The most important thing is to remember we are all ONE TEAM, in this together.


We'll figure it out.

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<p>We don't need to have all the answers before we take on a project or launch a new and innovative idea. We have faith that when it comes to some of the details, we'll figure it out along the way.</p><p>Building something new or creating something special is always messy, and greatness doesn't always come in nice, tidy packages. This is an <strong>advantage</strong>, not a hindrance.</p><p>We know that when it comes to tackling anything, we will band together with confidence and take on all necessary challenges. All our team members working together creates a team far greater than the sum of its parts. We know that in the end, as a team, we'll figure it out.</p>

We don't need to have all the answers before we take on a project or launch a new and innovative idea. We have faith that when it comes to some of the details, we'll figure it out along the way.

Building something new or creating something special is always messy, and greatness doesn't always come in nice, tidy packages. This is an advantage, not a hindrance.

We know that when it comes to tackling anything, we will band together with confidence and take on all necessary challenges. All our team members working together creates a team far greater than the sum of its parts. We know that in the end, as a team, we'll figure it out.


Innovation is rewarded. Execution is worshipped.

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<p>Ideas are fundamental to who we are. We encourage them. We love them. But ideas alone aren't enough. It takes both ideas AND execution to make great things happen. It takes stamina and commitment to bring innovation to life.</p>

Ideas are fundamental to who we are. We encourage them. We love them. But ideas alone aren't enough. It takes both ideas AND execution to make great things happen. It takes stamina and commitment to bring innovation to life.


Numbers and money follow; they do not lead.

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<p>Pursue purpose over profit. Ironically, the vast majority of those who chase numbers and money actually end up chasing their own tails.</p><p>Instead, chase great ideas. Prioritize creating value. Some of the most valuable things in the world cannot be measured on a spreadsheet; remember, a penny is just a penny. There is no map leading to a treasure chest buried in the sand. Follow your heart. Pursue your vision with a relentless passion to become great – whatever that means to you. If you do that, well, numbers and money will surely follow.</p>

Pursue purpose over profit. Ironically, the vast majority of those who chase numbers and money actually end up chasing their own tails.

Instead, chase great ideas. Prioritize creating value. Some of the most valuable things in the world cannot be measured on a spreadsheet; remember, a penny is just a penny. There is no map leading to a treasure chest buried in the sand. Follow your heart. Pursue your vision with a relentless passion to become great – whatever that means to you. If you do that, well, numbers and money will surely follow.


Simplicity is genius.

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<p>Simplifying things in this fast-moving, complicated world is true genius. Think about it: Simple design, simple process, simple packaging and simple communication. It's embracing the philosophy of “less is more” with an extra dash of clarity thrown into the mixing bowl. When we communicate with others, we cannot assume they know the same information we do. Because of this, we boil things down to what really matters. Simplicity doesn't just clarify; it makes things better for everybody. It's that simple.</p>

Simplifying things in this fast-moving, complicated world is true genius. Think about it: Simple design, simple process, simple packaging and simple communication. It's embracing the philosophy of “less is more” with an extra dash of clarity thrown into the mixing bowl. When we communicate with others, we cannot assume they know the same information we do. Because of this, we boil things down to what really matters. Simplicity doesn't just clarify; it makes things better for everybody. It's that simple.


We eat our own dog food.

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<p>Tying the threads and making connections within our Rocket Companies is what it's all about – that's what we mean when we say, “We eat our own dog food.” The basis of all real impact is found in the strength of relationships. Create them. Seek them out. Build upon them. Be loyal to them. Here, we go to our internal people and products first. If your level of awareness is high, you will find an endless amount of opportunity – “dog food” – to leverage the family around you to create something amazing.</p>

Tying the threads and making connections within our Rocket Companies is what it's all about – that's what we mean when we say, “We eat our own dog food.” The basis of all real impact is found in the strength of relationships. Create them. Seek them out. Build upon them. Be loyal to them. Here, we go to our internal people and products first. If your level of awareness is high, you will find an endless amount of opportunity – “dog food” – to leverage the family around you to create something amazing.


Do the right thing.

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<p>The high road is not optional; for us, it's the only choice. To our clients and team members, trust is the most valuable thing at Rocket Companies. Cultivate that trust by <strong>always</strong> doing the right thing. Doing the wrong thing is <strong>never worth it</strong>. We stick to the highest standard of integrity, without compromise.</p>

The high road is not optional; for us, it's the only choice. To our clients and team members, trust is the most valuable thing at Rocket Companies. Cultivate that trust by always doing the right thing. Doing the wrong thing is never worth it. We stick to the highest standard of integrity, without compromise.