Don’t Know What You’ve Got ‘Til it’s Gone…

Both of our daughters attend the same university in what we in the West like to call Eastern Canada, and what those who live there call Central Canada. (Likely because a large part of the Canadian population and half of the provinces are east of Ontario). Because they are at such a distance from us we use a variety of methods to stay in touch. Weekly postcards, Facebook, texting and phone calls are all in the mix. I also send packages and treats such as gift cards especially in the winter when the weather in the East is less benign than here on the West Coast. This year for Valentine’s I sent Starbuck’s cards to everyone along with some magazine articles and newspaper clippings. The typical Mum stuff. My niece, who is at a different university, received hers but neither of my daughters did to their profound disappointment. To have one go astray is understandable but both of them is just a little too much coincidence especially as they live in what is affectionately know as the ‘ghetto’, easily identifiable as student housing. The conclusion we’ve drawn is that somewhere in the path from Vancouver, BC to Kingston, Ontario, someone has taken the letters because they could feel the gift cards in the envelopes and decided to help themselves. What else could explain the disappearance? We are all disappointed that I can’t send gift cards because of the risk that they will be taken. While the monetary loss isn’t huge the erosion of trust is. The act of one person has affected how I view the security of the postal system which I depended on to help fill in some of the distance between me and my daughters. I trusted the postal system and was let down. Because of this incident I now have less confidence when I put letters in the mailbox, rightly or wrongly. The funny thing about trust is that we don’t always notice when it’s present but we sure notice when it’s gone. The recent scandals, from Bernie Madoff to the bonuses paid with bailout dollars, have eroded public trust in financial systems worldwide. Even those not directly affected are viewing their financial institutions differently, wondering how we know for sure that we can trust them to be concerned with our best interests and not their personal gain. Trust is at the foundation of all our relationships, personal and professional. There isn’t any relationship that doesn’t rely on trust because trust equals confidence. Trust is one of the most powerful ways leaders have to influence and motivate others. As Stephen Covey explains in his terrific book “The Speed of Trust”, leaders build trust through their behaviours of credibility and competence. When leaders trust and empower others they bring out the best in those they lead. The opposite of trust is suspicion. Leaders demonstrate their lack of trust when they micromanage. What they get in return is resentment, not performance. The difference between setting direction and micromanaging is understanding when to get involved and when to get out of the way, all based on extending trust to others.nnPeople return trust. If leaders don’t trust their teams, the teams won’t display trustworthy behaviour; they disengage and stop contributing their best. When leaders trust others they create systems that reflect this belief and teams respond with high trust behaviours:

they share information openly,

tolerate mistakes as a part of learning,

support innovation, value transparency and ,

engage in open, honest and robust communication.

All behaviours of high-performance teams and behaviours we need more of.n nWhat are you doing to build trust in your team and in your organization? Ideas you can usenn

Start by trusting yourself.

Develop your self-confidence by making and keeping agreements with yourself. If you don’t keep commitments to yourself it starts to erode your confidence and your integrity, two essential personal competencies of great leaders. Your behaviour must be congruent with your intent. If you tell yourself you are going to do something and you don’t, gaps start to appear between your intent and your behaviour and the end result is a loss of self-trust.

Model and teach the behaviours that create trust such as honesty, respect, transparency and loyalty. Learn to apologize when things go wrong. Deliver results by getting the right things done. Practice accountability and keep commitments. Be open to learning new ideas and new ways of doing things. Be prepared to deal with reality with courage and conviction. Participate fully in open, honest communication; practice robust dialogue. Listen first – you have 2 ears and 1 mouth; use them proportionally.

Reap the dividends of high trust. nThe compelling business case for trust is all about the bottom line one. Loss of trust creates a tax while high trust produces a dividend. Low trust always affects speed and cost. When you don’t trust you compensate by adding extra procedures such as additional reviews or sign-offs. These cost you in both time and money. On the other hand, high trust teams outperform low-trust teams by a factor of 3 simply because of the economics. When trust is high so is speed and innovation. Extend trust to others, especially if it is earned. Don’t withhold trust just because you perceive a risk. Provide support and encouragement and help to build competencies and confidence.

nnThe most important job of leaders is to inspire trust so others can achieve their best. What could you do to start practicing high-trust leadership?