How to Build Trust With Your Team

Everyone understands and talks about the importance of trust in relationships, including professional ones. But how can you actually cultivate trust with your team at work? To answer this, we first have to define trust. There are many definitions, and they all shed more light on the meaning and understanding of the word. I would describe it as both the ability to create and the result of creating an emotionally safe space with the people you interact with.

Imagine yourself as a baby being thrown up in the air by your dad or mom, and then, with a smirk on your face, you gracefully fall back into their arms. Why the smirk? Because you know that they are and will be there to catch you when you fall.

Are you there to catch your team when they fall? This is trust.

Although there is no one-size-fits-all approach, there are definitely five core principles that can be of value:

1) Listen

You will be surprised to know how many leaders claim to have strong active listening skills, yet their teams often feel that their voices are not heard and their needs are not met. What causes this discrepancy? A prominent root cause is a leader's tendency to make assumptions, fast. These assumptions originate from your previous experiences, which have helped you identify common patterns in people's behavior, extracting this way your own management principles on how to interpret and correspond to various behaviors, attitudes, personality traits, and communication styles. However, you must always remember to focus on the whole person. That is, every person is unique, and they react differently, especially in different circumstances.

So, what can you do to rectify that? Next time you catch yourself making a statement about one's intention or/and situation, be aware that it is an assumption - not a fact. Then, ask yourself immediately "How true is that?", "How do I know for sure?" These questions will allow you to shift from the "state of judgment," which is the source of every assumption, to the "state of discernment." The latter is based on curiosity, focuses on finding the truth, and gives the benefit of the doubt to your team, whereas the former derives from ego, often manifested in one's desire to exert power and to be right. Your choice on a daily basis between judgment and discernment will significantly determine the degree to which your team trusts you, and ultimately, your success and career progression as a leader.

2) Act on Feedback

Asking for feedback, along with staying curious and vigilant about your team's needs is necessary but not enough to create an emotionally safe space at work. You have to actually do something about it. In fact, the implementation of your team's feedback should be a top priority for you as a leader. So, make sure that specific action items are on your calendar on, at least, a weekly basis.

3) Ownership

Take 100% responsibility. No blaming. No complaining. No excuses. This includes both fully abstaining from and fiercely reprimanding finger-pointing, gaslighting, and being defensive when you receive feedback. Remember, it is your job as a leader to build trust with your team. It is also a top priority. Your position often entails that people will be looking for your guidance and that your decisions have a strong impact not only on their professional but also on their personal lives. It is on you to take all the necessary measures to prevent burnout, improve their well-being, and help them grow and progress in their careers.

Last but not least, true ownership requires you to be honest with yourself. How honest? Brutally honest. Why? Because without fully owning your mistakes, you will never be able to actually grow, both as a leader and a person. It's tough, but it's what it takes to transition from a manager to a leader. And here's the toughest part: it's an everlasting transition.

4) Transparency

Its meaning is twofold here: a) Organizational transparency and b) Personal transparency. The former pinpoints your duty as a leader to openly share with your team as much information as possible about the business and the organization. The latter constitutes your openness about your own goals, values, dreams, vision, and aspirations. What's in it for you? Why do you do what you do? What drives you? What gets you out of bed? What really matters to you?

"But, Jim, this is personal." Correct! And this is exactly why personal transparency is a unique and genuine way to build trust with your team. Because your team will have more certainty and confidence in you if they know who you really are and what you stand for. Like it or not, people truly despise uncertainty when it comes to one's intentions and values.

Furthermore, when you open yourself up, you demonstrate authenticity, which is quintessential for trust. The ultimate outcome? Your personal transparency gives your people permission, both on a conscious and subliminal level, to open themselves up, and share their goals and aspirations with you. When this happens, you are not just a manager, but a personal confidante. In other words, they trust that they are emotionally safe with you.

5) Inspiration

As a leader, you should always be striving to inspire your team. Be a role model for them, a paragon of hope and growth. But how can you actually do that? A simple, yet effective, way is to share stories that can successfully communicate your message. And although there's a gazillion stories you can use, nothing compares to your own experience, your own challenges. Share them. Share the struggle and negative feelings you needed to deal with. Finally, share how you overcame them. The bigger the challenge, the greater the inspiration.

Creating an emotionally safe space at work is hard. Building trust with your team is hard. But it's worth it. Just remember to listen, act on feedback, take ownership, be transparent, and inspire.

#trustatwork

#teamwork

#peakperformance