It goes without saying that you can’t be effective as a leader if your team doesn’t trust you. Successful leaders understand the importance of trust and take it seriously.
Every day your actions are either building or breaking trust. It’s essential to make a conscious effort to walk your talk, keep your promises and act in alignment with your values.
Top leaders go beyond these basics to create a climate that enhances and amplifies trust both in the leader and in the team. This trust-rich environment enables your business to withstand the occasional mistake without damaging the core trust essential for success.
Here are five ways the most successful leaders build and maintain trust:
Openness – This includes being available, accessible, and transparent. Successful leaders know that if they are not approachable, they may not get complete and accurate information from their team. When a successful leader actively listens, asks questions, encourages others to share their concerns and then takes what they hear into account, people trust that their voices are being heard.
Credibility – Credibility is earned through expertise and through acknowledging your limitations and mistakes. Taking responsibility for your own shortcomings allows your team to admit to their own mistakes without fear of failure. Honesty is also an important component of credibility.
Reliability – Reliability is a combination of consistency and dependability. Your team needs to know that they can count on you to be predictable in your expectations and reactions. When your actions demonstrate your values, you set a clear example for the team to follow. People trust leaders who do what they say they will do. When your words and actions match, you create a trust balance that pays dividends.
Empathy – Empathy means showing consideration for your team’s needs and feelings. This includes making sure that employees have the tools they need to perform their jobs and balancing the need for results with the well-being of the people responsible for producing those results. Providing support and encouragement, even when mistakes are made, goes a long way to establishing trust.
Appreciation – Showing appreciation for good work is only part of the equation. Your team needs to see that you trust them to make good decisions and to invest in the company’s success. When you involve the team in decision-making, you make trust a mutual value, rather than something that belongs only to you as the leader.
Make sure to recognize positive behaviors and relationships as well. When your team knows that you value who they are, as well as what they do, you will create a climate that boosts success.
Here’s the bottom line: Trust is not automatic, it is earned. When you go above and beyond the basics to consciously earn and maintain your team’s trust, you set yourself, your team, and your business up for success.
Keep building trust. It matters.