Is There Trust?

I haven’t found anything better and for those more left-brained people who like to see something specific rather than a ‘felt’ sense, it’s tangible.

 

Your trustworthiness is built on your:

 

Credibility – have you done this before? What’s your experience?
Reliability – do you do what you say you’re going to do?
Intimacy – how open and honest are you? Do you share personally?
Self-Orientation or as I prefer to think of it Self-interest – do you take actions for yourself?
 
You can see how by altering any of those variables your own trustworthiness can go up & down.
 
For teams, the model that I love is Lencioni’s from 'Five Dysfunctions of a Team'. For an effective team there is a need for Trust as a foundation for all the others to build on. Based on Lencioni’s model, if a team doesn’t have Trust then healthy Conflict can’t happen, there is a lack of Commitment, less Accountability and less attention to Results.    
 
As in the following diagram & following the pyramid up, if there is a lack of trust then there is likely artificial harmony, ambiguity, lower standards with more ego and status.

 

 

• Admit weaknesses and mistakes
• Ask for help
• Accept questions and input about their areas of responsibility
• Give one another the benefit of the doubt before arriving at a negative conclusion
• Take risks in offering feedback and assistance
• Appreciate and tap into one another’s’ skills and experiences
• Focus time and energy on important issues not politics
• Offer and accept apologies without hesitation
• Look forward to meetings and other opportunities to work as a group  

I’m sure you can see teams that have operated like this and perhaps others that haven’t!