After the deluge of rain we had in the past few years that resulted in the infamous 100-year flooding near my home, the destruction was sadly awesome including casualties of a Dairy Queen and one of my favorite BBQ restaurants. I mean, you can damage roads and bridges, but do not mess with brisket, corn fritters, and animal cookie blizzards! Seriously though, the damage was real and overwhelming for so many.
There has also been extraordinary damage of a different kind in many towns, schools, organizations, and churches. Trust and credibility are hanging on by a very thin string. Over the past few years, we have guided many leaders on what to say and what to do amid flooding criticism and critique that seems to have an endless supply of fuel. Perhaps you too are experiencing your own personal or organizational flood and wondering what to say and do. Here are three low-cost, high-impact ways to create, retain, or restore your credibility and trust.
1. Be Humble.
Humility is as simple as recognizing what is true about you, your leadership, and your organization. A humble leader does not fake it with self-deprecating humor that does not reflect the truth. A humble leader acknowledges mistakes, takes ownership, does not deflect responsibility, admits his or her limitations, and does not take credit without also acknowledging the work of others. And a humble leader is someone who knows that neither he nor anyone else is perfect at being humble all the time! I once read a statement from an attorney that said organizations would be sued less if leaders just humbly acknowledged their mistakes and worked to make things right. The book of Proverbs says that pride will result in disgrace, but humility will result in wisdom.
So, as you seek to create, retain, or restore trust, start with not only an attitude of humility but also set a tone of humility in what you say, what you do, and how you say and do it.
2. Be Honest.
I recently read the story of We Work, a company that was started in 2010 by Adam Neumann to provide flexible shared workspaces. In less than a decade, it went from a company worth an estimated $40 billion that employed 15,000 people worldwide to laying off thousands of employees and losing $3,000 per minute (or $1 million each day)! Was there fraud? That has not been proven. But sometimes you can have something different – what NYU Stern School of Business professor Scott Galloway refers to as “non-carbonated fraud” or what author David Nyberg refers to as the “varnished truth.” Leaders need to stay above the varnished truth, leave the carbonation to our Diet Coke, and do our best to present an honest message. This is not always easy to do since, in some circumstances, a leader is not at liberty to be fully transparent due to matters of employment law and when confidential information is involved.
But if we want to create, retain, or restore trust, we need to strongly lean into honesty more than shading the truth.
3. Be Hopeful.
Crises and failures are the breeding ground of despair. This is true in sports, war, business, and all other arenas of leadership. One mistake or failure can result in a cascading effect of cynicism, negative self-talk, and a culture of hopelessness. Studies have shown, and our experiences are proof, that moods are contagious. For example, research on sports teams found those that were able to more quickly rebound and return to winning had more positive talk among the team than those that got stuck in excessive negative self-talk. In her book Confidence, author Rosabeth Moss Kanter refers to stuck cultures as doom loops - where failure almost becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. While there is real danger in overselling hopefulness without honesty and realism about the present state you are facing, there is even greater danger in withholding hope.
So, if we want to create, retain, or restore trust, we must be messengers of hope.
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Jay Desko is the CEO of The Center Consulting Group and brings experience in the areas of organizational assessment, leadership coaching, decision-making, and strategic questioning. Jay’s degrees include an M.Ed. in Instructional Systems Design from Pennsylvania State University and a Ph.D. in Organizational Behavior and Leadership from The Union Institute.
