Trust is the glue of life. It’s the most essential ingredient in effective communication.
It’s the foundational principle that holds all relationships.
Stephen Covey
In order to maintain momentum and focus on a vision for an organization, you will have to offer constructive criticisms and correct certain behaviors. Your effectiveness will depend on how much trust you have built within your organization – your trust bank. The core components of building your trust bank are integrity, transparency, regular interactions, and authenticity.
The core components of building your trust bank are integrity, transparency, regular interactions, and authenticity.
First and foremost, a leader must have integrity in all of his words and actions. This is the only way to build the trust and confidence that you, as the leader, will do what he says he will do and make the right decisions for the organization. Beyond this, a leader can build his trust bank by being transparent. Transparency allows the organization a glimpse into the leader’s organizational and personal goals, values, and focus. This transparency is a powerful empowerment to the organization because it creates a comprehensive view of where the organization is being directed by the leader. This understanding allows people at all levels of the organization to make independent decisions that support the vision of the organization.
This transparency is a powerful empowerment to the organization because it creates a comprehensive view of where the organization is being directed by the leader.
A leadership style that displays integrity and transparency can build transparency throughout the organization. I have found that, in my experience as a Commander, talking and living the transparent message has improved the transparency amongst the unit members and the leadership. By sharing my vision, personal and organizational goals, and values and holding true to them, I have been able to transparently communicate changes that I need made to meet the organizations’ priorities. What this has created is an opportunity to make clear corrections that need made in a way that are viewed as constructive because the people in the organization can link it to my shared vision, goals, and values. This has been very powerful in situations where I had to discuss promotions, workplace accommodations and procedures, and other cultural changes. Most of my interactions have been received, not with enthusiasm, but with acceptance due to transparency and the trust bank I have built with these individuals.
By sharing my vision, personal and organizational goals, and values and holding true to them, I have been able to transparently communicate changes that I need made to meet the organizations’ priorities.
As a father of two teenagers and a toddler, I have also experienced the importance of the trust bank. In this case, I have built my trust bank by spending a lot of time and interacting with my kids. One benefit of being a school teacher for 20 years is that I have been on my kids’ schedules for most of their lives. This allowed me to spend a lot of quality and quantity time with them. Besides building a good relationship with them, I have also been able to build my trust bank with them during these times through these regular interactions. These regular interactions allow me to observe them in many situations. I am able to recognize and praise them for positive behaviors and accomplishments. One of the most powerful parenting lessons that I have learned and applied is that building this trust bank through regular interactions allows you to effectively counsel and discipline your children. When there is a behavior that needs corrected, I can step in and correct it effectively because I have built the trust bank to the point where they know I love them, care about them, and want what is best for them. This makes them much more likely to accept the correction and also makes it easier for us to move on. Could the same be said about our interactions with those in our organizations?
When there is a behavior that needs corrected, I can step in and correct it effectively because I have built the trust bank to the point where they know I love them, care about them, and want what is best for them.
Integrity, transparency, and regular interactions lead to authenticity. I believe every leader aspires to be an authentic leader where initiatives are met with support borne out of a strong trust bank that has been built. How are you building your trust bank ?
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