FIVE STEPS TO BUILDING TRUST

In his book, 'The Speed of Trust', Stephen Covey makes the point that where trust exists in teams and in relationships, things happen faster. Where there is a lack of trust, things take longer to do as people slow down as they are not sure about who and what they are dealing with.

Team members who trust each other are happier and more effective. As with most things that happen at a cultural level, the leader is responsible for establishing trust with a team. 

Here are five things you can do to promote trust amongst your team members.

1. Tell it straight. Be a straight shooter and a straight talker. Make sure that everyone believes that what you say is the truth. Ensure that they don't have to second guess what comes out of your mouth.

2. Clarify expectations. Make sure that everyone knows exactly what you expect from them and exactly what they can expect from you.

3. Be reliable. Deliver on your promises or don't make them. Letting people down will lead them to doubt you and your intentions in the future. Don't give them reason to do this.

4. Be accountable. Take ownership of the outcomes of your actions. Put your hand up if you stuff up.

5. Face the tough stuff. Don't dodge difficult decisions or conversations. Show others that you have the courage to lead by facing up to difficulties.

These should be the actions of you as the leader, but you should create an environment or culture where everyone buys in and creates trust in the team.

Creating accountability

“The ancient Romans had a tradition: whenever one of their engineers constructed an arch, as the capstone was hoisted into place, the engineer assumed accountability for his work in the most profound way possible: he stood under the arch.”

~ Michael Armstrong

Can you imagine what it would be like in your organisation if no one ever uttered the words “that’s not my job"?

In organisations where there is a culture of accountability people tend to apply themselves more and perform at a higher level. They do this because they know if something goes wrong, it’s on their head (like the capstone). Leaders who are accountable for their actions gain respect and credibility. People want to follow this kind of leader.

In organisations where there is not a culture of accountability, people blame each other when things go wrong. People can under perform as there are no consequences for poor work. They make up all kinds of excuses to explain the result.  Leaders who lack accountability might look over their shoulder and see that there is no one behind them.

To create a culture of accountability make sure that you and everyone else in the organisation knows just what their job is and that they fully commit to seeing it through. As a leader, that’s your job.