Move at the Pace of Trust

Last week I spoke with a group of doctoral students in the Syracuse iSchool about the intersection of theory and practice.  One of the questions asked was - as I remember - about the theories leaders used during the pandemic as they worked with their organizations. My response wasn't about theories, but about trust.

Especially during a disaster, conflict, or when there are problems, workers need to be able to trust each other and trust their leaders. They need to know that those around them are:

• Reliable
• Willing to show up when needed
  
• Truth speakers
  
• People who get things done
• Decision makers who make decisions with the best interest of everyone in mind 
• Willing to keep their word

When there is trust, a decision can be made quickly and everyone will get on-board with it. When there is a lack of trust, decisions can move slowly and will be second-guessed. When there is trust, people will follow the leader. When there is a lack of trust, people may follow no one.

Our organizations move at the pace of trust.  If people trust each other and their leader, the organization can move quickly. If there is a lack of trust, that organization will move, change, or evolve slowly.  It might even regress.

Trust does not happen automatically, rather it takes time to develop. The staff need to get to know the leader, how that person thinks, how they makes decisions, and what that person values. Staff need to both hear how the leader works and also see how the leader works. Does the person's actions match their words? 

A leader can also gain trust through association. A leader might gain some level of trust because that person worked at M-organization, knows Q-person, or went to V-school, for example. But that trust through association is only the beginning and will not go far. The leader needs to build upon it, so they trust is not about whom that person knows, but about the person themself.

I should note that our default might be that we trust people we meet, but that trust is tenuous. For some, I know their default is to trust no one. And before I continue, I should also note that trust can be broken easily and then be hard to rebuild.  In other words, the leader's actions must be consistent or staff will become less trusting.

So how does a leader build trust? This article lists 10 things and I agree with them:

1. Value long-term relationships
2. Be honest
3. Honor your commitments
4. Admit when you’re wrong
5. Communicate effectively
6. Be vulnerable
7. Be helpful
8. Show people that you care
9. Stand up for what’s right
10. Be transparent

Be sure to read the article for more information on those 10 items. 

Those 10 steps above are not hard and they do not require a lot of time. However, they need to be done. Yes, all of them and even when it is hard or not convenient.

So as you look back over the pandemic and what your organization or other organizations did, think about trust. 

• How did they move at the pace of trust? And what was that pace? 
• If there was a lack of trust, what is being done to rebuild it? 
• If you are not a leader, what can you do to reestablish trust or ensure that trust survives?

If you need to build trust, do it now because you will need it when the next crisis or problem occurs.