Just as leadership is a role best executed by personal example, in The Speed of Trust, Stephen M.R. Covey explains that the foundation of trust is personal credibility, which Covey describes as the product of “Four Cores”:
- Integrity: Do your actions align with your values?
- Intents: What’s your agenda? Are you thinking about your year-end bonus or your team’s long-term success in the context of your organization’s mission?
- Capabilities: As important as what you know and how you do it, is your ability to accurately gauge your competencies and execute accordingly.
- Results: Listed last, but this really comes before everything. This is the track record that proves a person worthy of that initial trust that gets things moving.
Let’s also be clear about what trust is not.
- Team-building games and company offsites may build camaraderie, but the effects are short-lived.
- Likeability does not reflect trustworthiness. Just because you share your colleague’s sense of humor that doesn’t mean you can rely on them to meet the necessary quality standards.
- Conversely, conflict can be challenging, but lack of conflict can indicate greater perils—apathy or oppression. A healthy, dissenting voice actually requires a baseline of trust.
Join WEST on November 15th to learn more about building a team that you can trust.
