A trust test for leaders

What trust does

Trust regulates risk-taking, experimentation, collaboration, information-sharing, innovation, and growth. Organizations create and realize potential where there is a culture of trust. In its absence, creativity suffers, engagement declines, the quality of outputs worsens, and undesirable outcomes proliferate.

Letting things out and in

Trust is built on expressing vulnerability with another person. This means accepting the risk of being hurt. Each time we make ourselves vulnerable, we risk being rejected, mocked, or scorned – but we need to show vulnerability and take risks to build the potential for trust. Once we do, there is a moment of reaction or reciprocation, where the other person may also show vulnerability. We can think of vulnerability in three actions:

1. Disclosure

Revealing something about ourselves that others don’t know. This can feel uncomfortable, but it’s only through revealing our vulnerabilities that we move beyond seeing each other as roles or figures of greater or lesser authority, representations, or stereotypes. By sharing something honest about ourselves, we invite others to see us as humans with the same hopes and hang-ups as everybody else.

2. Feedback

Honest feedback can be painful to give and receive, and our fear of rejection or reprisal moderates it. Often, we soften or edit feedback because we don’t want to hurt someone’s feelings, provoke anger, or risk their disappointment – but reciprocal feedback in real time is a lynchpin of building trust.

3. Provocation

Provocation requires reserves of vulnerability and courage. This is where trust-building can go wrong. It entails entering the other’s personal space and boundaries. They may be unwilling to disclose because they feel invaded or attacked, and their initial reaction might be highly defensive. Yet to leverage the potential of our relationships, we must continuously test, interrogate, and challenge each other. Moving forward means constantly questioning assumptions and beliefs.