Eroding the Foundation of Trust
Everyone knows, or should know, one of the cardinal sins of any new leader, whether new to leadership or new to an organization is to make immediate and sweeping changes; there are few exceptions to this rule. So few, in my estimation, that the vast majority of us will never need to break it. By immediate, I mean within the first year; and by sweeping I don’t just mean extensive, I also mean without regard to the past and present contributions and wisdom of others. I will not dwell on this and only need to stress that, if you are a new leader, you have not been brought in to make immediate changes unless otherwise directed.
"When people know that you care about them, first and foremost, they will follow you anywhere or back any changes you want or need to make."
Novices often break this rule out of ignorance because they are anxious to prove their worth or be recognized for achieving what the previous manager failed to do—hubris. They are thinking of themselves more than how their actions will affect their team; herein lies the principle cause of the erosion of trust. People can spot self-importance without much help, and your team knows who is most important to you—if you really care about them or not.
Eroders
When people know that you care about them, first and foremost, they will follow you anywhere or back any changes you want or need to make. Change is uncomfortable, even for those of us who chase squirrels—you know who you are. That uncomfortableness is mitigated by trust. I trust you because I know that you have my best interest at heart—that knowledge doesn’t come easy or fast. It will take time and deliberate effort.
Knowitallitis also erodes trust. People will not trust you if they think you think you know everything. When a novice begins making immediate changes it signals to everyone that they do not trust you, your experience, or your history with the organization. You’re signaling to everyone your self-importance, and no one trusts the guy who thinks he’s the most important player on the team.
Going through the motions of the latest leadership fad doesn’t build trust either. If you’re just checking items off your daily leader to-do list, I’ve got news for you, your team sees right through it and they are probably mocking you behind your back. Item one, walk around and say good morning to everyone—check. Ask everyone how their weekend was—check. That isn’t fooling anyone. Those things don’t matter if the major things are left unattended.
The final mistake I’d like to highlight in this post that new leaders make which erodes trust is micromanagement. When new leaders constantly look over the shoulders of their team they signal they don’t trust them. Why do you constantly want to know what your team is doing every second of the day? Micromanagement is a dog whistle that says your team is untrustworthy and needs to be replaced. You must trust others to be trusted. Let your people know that you will trust them until they give you a reason not to.
One more word on building trust—listen. People want to know they have been heard and understood. Here’s a free example. Once a team I served on submitted a comprehensive report compiled by a junior member. It was thorough, concise, and most importantly, accurate. An excellent report, with which, our entire team was in agreement detailing reasons to discontinue a fruitless effort. The new leader took one look at two years of hard data and said, “Let’s keep doing it for six more months and see what happens.”
Think about the ignorance of this course of action. Our team was wasting an entire staff member each year on something that produced no results. It was busy work. Can you imagine our dismay? He knew nothing of our department and probably wouldn’t have noticed if we had just stopped doing it altogether. He heard what we said but wasn’t listening for his own pride. He knew better than the team that had been doing the work.
Many leaders suffer from the Dunning-Kruger Effect, a cognitive bias where they do not recognize their own shortcomings. My pastor always said, “God is looking for reluctant leaders.” He recognized humility was in integral part of leadership. People tend to trust a humble leader because humble leaders view themselves and their abilities with sobriety.
Conclusions
Do you want to build trust? Take a bullet for the team. Risk your new position and walk the edge of the precipice for your team. Take the chance they may know more than you. Listen to them. Get out of their way. Give them clear direction and let them get the job done. That’s what leaders do—they lead. They show the way and model trust. If you don’t know where you are going you can’t show them the way; and if you won’t trust them, why should they trust you?
Check out other posts on: Micromanagement; The Art of the Start; Inspiring Others to Greater Heights; Are you Leading or Managing; and Leading All-Star Players.
