Trust is at the core of any successful relationship. At work, when we trust someone it fosters confidence in their discretion, integrity, and decision-making.
You may think that to establish trust, you need to demonstrate or deliver something highly impressive or noteworthy. In reality, it’s your daily interactions, communications, and behaviors that build trust.
Although trust takes some time to build, and can be tough to rebuild when it’s broken, it can be strengthened through small incremental efforts. Here are a few behaviors that can have a high impact:
1. Deliver on what you promise. Be cautious of promising more than you can manage, or promising an outcome over which you may have little-to-no control.
Here are a few examples of where you would have full control over follow through on a promise:
• “I’ll get back to you with an answer, either way, by mid-day tomorrow.”
• “The minute I have approval to communicate the direction we’re taking, I’ll call a meeting and keep you all informed.”
• “I’ll serve as an advocate for your budget request.”
2. Maintain the esteem of others. Whether you’re talking directly with someone or you’re talking about someone in their absence, do your best to regard your leaders, colleagues and employees. Avoid spreading negative information. If you’re required to be in a discussion about a performance issue relating to another person, avoid judging the behavior. Stick to the impact that the performance may have on business or organizational standards or objectives.
3. Uphold confidentiality, as appropriate, and as agreed upon, at all costs.
Building trust is not always easy, but it is simple. If we want to be trusted, we need to be trustworthy.
By: Donna Rawady
Donna Rawady is an executive coach. She can be reached at www.donnarawady.com.