Essential Insights for Leaders: Understanding the Trust Formula
Trust in leadership is a hot topic, and for good reason. The importance of trust in fostering open communication, emotional safety, and mental health is well-known. But what exactly is trust, and how can it be cultivated? Let's take a closer look at trust as an equation: Trust = Character + Competence + Commitment.
Competence is the baseline. Without it, you'll struggle to gain trust. But competence alone isn't enough. In fact, research has shown that it's often a leadership's character, not their competence, that contributes to trust-eroding poor judgments during tumultuous times such as the global financial crisis.
Research from the Ivey Business School highlights that leadership's character and competence require commitment. Many leaders are promoted based on competence but often lack the commitment to lead. Instead, they are committed to the perks that come with the role, such as the corner office, title, salary, or prestige. But it's commitment to the role that builds trust.
Character: More Than a Pretty Face
We trust people's competence and their commitment to get the job done. But what about their character? Consider that a surgeon with weak humility or a lawyer lacking integrity can make questionable judgments that compromise trust. It's important to understand the components of character, which are interconnected and rely on each other. Think of character as a wheel, with judgment at its center. The 10 dimensions supporting judgment include: courage, transcendence, drive, collaboration, humanity, humility, integrity, temperance, accountability, and justice. Deficiencies in any of these dimensions can undermine trust.
Observing Character
Trust isn't simply about bad people doing bad things; it can also be about not trusting that a person will step up to a challenge. Trust is often eroded by a lack of judgment, which can be traced back to imbalances in character. For instance, a lack of courage, humanity, or humility can compromise trust. It's important to observe character in ourselves and others to build trust.
Becoming Trustworthy
So, how do we become trustworthy? First and foremost, we must strengthen our competence, which is often the focus of training and development. While character has been neglected, there is evidence-based guidance on how to develop it. For example, the Ivey Business School's research reveals that temperance (being calm, composed, patient, prudent, and self-controlled) is commonly a weak character dimension. By strengthening this dimension through practices like breathwork, we can access other dimensions of character to become trustworthy.
Cultivating Character-Based Trust
Character isn't just an individual thing; it has a contagious effect. Consider the positive impact that someone who embodies strong character can have on others. Similarly, a person with weak character can erode trust. As leaders, it's essential to cultivate strong character in ourselves and others to build trust.
Becoming a Trusted Organization
Just as individuals can cultivate trust, organizations can also become more trustworthy. The Canadian Armed Forces, for example, has a motto of "Trusted to Serve." This motto highlights the importance of both character and competence in building trust. Organizations can invest in developing the strength of character in their members to become more trustworthy.
Final Thoughts
Trust is fundamental to building strong, high-performing teams. By understanding the components of character and prioritizing its development, leaders can build trust and foster an environment of emotional safety, open communication, and mental well-being. Trust isn't a one-time act; it requires consistent effort and focus on developing character alongside competence and commitment. So, let's embrace character as the cornerstone of trust in leadership, because trust matters.
- A leader's character can contribute significantly to trust-building, as poor judgments during challenging times such as the global financial crisis often stem from character deficiencies rather than competence.
- In order to become trustworthy, it's crucial to not only focus on enhancing competence but also on developing character through practices like breathwork, which can help improve dimensions like temperance.
- Just as individuals can cultivate trust through character development, organizations can also invest in strengthening the character of their members to enhance their overall trustworthiness and foster an environment that encourages emotional safety, open communication, and mental well-being.
