In our ongoing series of leadership attributes, we now look at trust and leadership. In their excellent book Simple Truths of Leadership: 52 Ways to Be a Servant Leader and Build Trust, Ken Blanchard and Randy Conley clearly show the connection between being a servant leader and trust. Here’s my review of that book.
Trust is an interesting attribute in that it can take a lifetime to build it, and yet it can be lost in an instant. Everyone approaches trust in a different manner. For example, I had a long-time, respected member of my team who had been hurt in the past. Her approach was that if someone lost her trust, they could never get it back.In the workplace, I always told my team members that I started with trust. It was up to them to lose it. Randy Conley agrees when he writes “In the workplace, it’s your job as a leader to extend trust to your people first. It’s not their job to have blind faith in you simply by virtue of your power or position of authority.”
I’m increasingly reminded of the importance of trust in work (and all) relationships. In addition to Simple Truths of Leadership, over the years, I’ve read books by authors such as Patrick Lencioni, Stephen M.R. Covey and Ken Blanchard on the subject. A helpful article I read by Dave Kraft entitled “I Don’t Trust You”, stated “When it comes to business, church and family, trust is critical. Probably one of the worst things anyone can say to another person is, “I don’t trust you.”
In his helpful book The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, Patrick Lencioni states that trust is the foundation of real teamwork. Covey has written that the first job of a leader – at work or home – is to inspire trust. He states that regardless of the relationship – sports team, business, church or family, if you can’t trust one another, there’s going to be trouble.
Since trust is so important, how can leaders build and maintain it? Here are five suggestions:
- Start with trust. My parents often told us that it is the last thing that someone does that people often remember them for. Think of Bill Cosby. He was at one time known as “America’s Father” from his role on television, but no longer. Where do you begin in regards to trust? Why not approach trust like I did with my team members when I told them that they had my trust and it was up to them to lose it?
- Maintain trust by developing strong relationships. Lencioni writes that like a good marriage, trust on a team is never complete but must be maintained over time. You might say that you need to continually put deposits in the “trust account” you have with your team members. Covey states that in relationships of high trust we can say the wrong thing and people will still understand our meaning. However, in relationships of low trust, we can be very measured and precise but people can still misinterpret us. How do you build strong relationships with your team members so that you can build and maintain trust with them?
- Show trust in action. Blanchard writes that today we hear a lot of talk about trust, and even more about the lack of it. He states that people need to see trust in action more than they need to hear about it. What are some ways you show trust in action? For example, are you able to keep confidential those things that your team members share with you? Do you keep your word, and can people depend on it?
- Work hard to restore trust. Even if we start with trust, there are times we will do or say things that will damage trusting relationships. We need to work to restore that trust by being accountable and repentant. Lencioni states that the key ingredient to building trust is not time, but courage. Members of trusting teams admit weaknesses and mistakes to one another. What do you do as a leader when trust needs to be restored?
- Be intentional about maintaining trust. Demonstrate daily that those you lead can count on you, and that you “walk your talk”. How do youintentionally do that?
These are just a few thoughts on how to build and maintain trust as a leader. There are many, many more that we could talk about. What are you doing as a leader to build trust with those you lead?
This is an Adapted Excerpt From My Book “A LEADER WORTH FOLLOWING:
40 Key Leadership Attributes and Applications to Master”.
