Leadership Trust & Credibility – How to Improve it Dramatically with One Skill!

How many times have you heard (or even used!) these phrases in your organization?

• "I’ll get back to you soon"
• "I’ll get the report to you as fast as I can"
• "I’ll let you know as quickly as I can"
• "I’ll let you know as soon as possible"
• "I’ll be back to you before too long"

What's the problem with these phrases? They tend to reduce credibility and erode trust!

Here's why!

I refer to those phrases above as "gobbledygook" language. They give rise to mismatched expectations. Think about it. If I say the word "soon" or "fast" in our conversation, you will have an expectation of what that means. To you "soon" means tomorrow, to me it means next week! So what happens? I get that report to you next week and you are disappointed or even frustrated. You may think that I am not dependable. You may feel that you can’t count on me. What happens to my credibility with you? It gets reduced. My trust with you has been eroded.

Trust & credibility – Why is it important?

Here's what trust studies and research have to say:

• A lack of trust is a major reason employees are not loyal to their boss
• The single source of improvement failures in organizations is lack of trust
• The #1 force restraining quality and performance in organizations is distrust
• Lack of trust is a top priority problem in organizations

It's evident that trust and credibility is vital to the organization. It's also vital to your image in the organization.

Here's what happens if trust and credibility is missing between you and others in your organization:

• There is little cooperation
• There is little risk-taking
• There is little commitment
• There is little self-motivation
• There is little genuine communication
• There is little morale

What can you do to create a trust-building culture?

You can start by turning gobbledygook language into Positive Commitment Statements.

A Positive Commitment Statement has three key elements:

1. Time (Making a time commitment)
2. Accountability (Taking ownership for the commitment)
3. Organization (Being personally organized to meet your commitments)

Here's an example:

A peer asks you for a report. Instead of saying "I’ll have it you next week", say "I’ll have it on your desk by 5:00 PM on Tuesday".

Now here’s the rub. People who I am coaching will often say to me, "If I have to depend on someone else for that report, like the IT department, how can I possibly make a time commitment?"

Here's what you do. Rather than giving a time commitment for a result, make a time commitment for status! So you might say, "I have to work with IT on this report, I’ll get back to you on Tuesday by 5:00 PM with status".

Now if you really want to be a star, beat your time commitment. Get the result or the status on their desk by Monday at 5:00 PM!!! They will be delighted!

By now it should be pretty obvious that you need to "own the commitment", which eliminates excuses. And it should be pretty obvious that you need to be personally organized, with whatever system you use, to keep the commitment.

Keeping and beating your time commitments will increase your level of dependability and your image in the organization. People know that they can rely on you. When that happens, your trust quotient goes up and your credibility increases.

"Making and keeping irrevocable commitments that offer no excuses or loopholes is the fastest way to build trust and credibility in the organization!"

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