1.5 - About University

12.2B UILDING T RUST INTO W ORKINGR ELATIONSHIPSInspired by Stephen Covey, James Kouzes, Barry Posner, Earnie Larson, Harriet Lerner, and Fernando Bartolomé.“If only we had more trust,” leaders say, as if it somehow depends on fate. It doesn’t. Althoughtrust cannot be controlled, it can be built within workgroups. Low trust has a devastating effecton communication and teamwork, often manifested in withholding of information, rejectingothers’ information, or withholding discretionary effort. These behaviors reinforce low trust,eliciting similar behavior from others, to confirm their suspicions.Trust presents a paradox in that it needs to be earned, but in order to be earned, it first hasto be given. This tool provides essential how-to’s for developing trust within organizations.In some organizational cultures, it is easy to be trusting because of the general atmosphereof trust. In dog-eat-dog cultures, trusting a little is an act of courage. In these low-trust atmospheres,you may wish to become what Alan Wilkins calls a “border guard,” creating an enclaveof trusting behavior within your leadership group. Although trust is measured by what youactually do, trust does not require that you be naive and regularly be taken advantage of.Neither should you fall into the trap of writing people off on the basis of personal chemistryor personality, dismissing them into a category unworthy of trust. To obtain trust, rememberthat “the best way to get model behavior is to model the behavior.” [☛ 1.8 RecursiveLeadership]G UIDELINES FOR UNDERSTANDING TRUSTHere are ten guidelines that will help you understand the nature of trust.Element of trustTrust is delicate.It takes courage andvulnerability to trust.Trust is based on whatyou do.Trust cannot becontrolled.Trust has to beconstantly earned.What this means in leadership practiceIf trust is broken, it’s hard to repair. That’s not to say that, given the right circumstances,it’s impossible to win back. Given a basic respect and goodwill between people andwillingness to work on their relationship, trust can be regained. But it takes a lot of work.Courage and vulnerability are especially difficult if you’ve experienced strong betrayal inyour life. Surprisingly, leaders who have never experienced strong betrayal may not havelearned to trust wisely. Trust means having given others the benefit of the doubt—”I willtrust these people until there is clear evidence that they cannot be trusted.”If you want to be trusted as a leader, you must first give evidence that you’re trustworthy.Trust isn’t based on your credentials (i.e., your experience or education). It’s based on yourrelationships and what you do, particularly in difficult situations. Doing includesdemonstrating competence and being sincere and reliable.Trust cannot be controlled, legislated, or forced. That doesn’t mean that leaders cannotinfluence trust. What it does mean is that you need to do your best, but be prepared to letgo if your best isn’t good enough. Nobody is trusted by everyone, and some people aren’tcapable of trusting anyone.Like relationships and communication, trust either grows or stagnates; it cannot be heldconstant. You simply can’t put trust on autopilot. Trust needs to be demonstrated andreinforced regularly or it slowly loses strength.366 SECTION 12 TOOLS FOR LEADING RELATIONSHIPS