Last time we began looking at the issue of trust in leadership. We established the fact that trust is the bedrock of any relationship. Without trust a team is bound to disintegrate sooner or later. A leader must ensure he creates an atmosphere where trust is in abundant supply in his team – trust must flow unhindered from the leader to the followers and vice versa.
Trust is a two-way street. The leader must not just be trustworthy but trust his followers. He must ensure that he is trustworthy – worthy of earning and receiving the trust of his team.
“If we can by any method establish a relation of mutual trust between the laborer and the employer, we shall lay the foundation stone of a structure that will endure for all time.”Mark Hanna
Certain things can hinder the followers from trusting the leader. When the followers think the leader is only interested in the success of the corporate body only, trust will be in low supply. Nobody wants to “be used” – everybody wants to have a sense of fulfillment and satisfaction individually in the pursuit of any corporate goal or objective.
“Leadership is the creation of an environment in which others are able to self-actualize in the process of completing the job.” John Mellecker
The leader must ensure his followers know that he has their best interest at heart even in the pursuit of the corporate agenda.
“When people feel trusted, they’ll do almost anything under the sun not to disappoint the person who gave them the gift of trust.” Rob LeBow
He must make the followers see that the corporate success is their success also.
“You have to create a culture where everybody has an opportunity to be recognized.” John Mackey
The corporate body must not be growing and succeeding and the people responsible for such success are diminishing. A leader must ensure his followers have confidence in him that he can be trusted.
“Leaders strengthen credibility by demonstrating that they are not in it for themselves; instead, they have the interests of the institution, department, or team and its constituents at heart. Being a servant may not be what many leaders had in mind when they choose to take responsibility for the vision and direction of their organization or team, but serving others is the most glorious and rewarding of all leadership tasks.” James Kouzes and Barry Posner
One of the greatest benefits of trust in leadership is that it is a great morale booster. Wikipedia defines employee morale as “. . . the job satisfaction, outlook, and feelings of well-being an employee has within a workplace setting. Proven to have a direct effect on productivity, it is one of the corner stones of business.”
Morale can never be present when trust is absent.
“One of the primary tasks of a manager is to keep the morale of team members high. Workers are at their most productive in a positive environment and every organization would like its employees to stay motivated so that they perform their duties.” Leo Sun.
To Be Continued
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