Building Trust: The Key to Successful Leadership

By Ngan Tran - The New Leaders

What is Trust?

Imagine you’ve been given a significant project and need to find someone responsible for overseeing it. How would you choose the right person?

Would it be based on reliability?

"Mr. A is very trustworthy because he is always consistent and very honest. But can he handle such a big project?"

Or would it be based on credibility?

"Ms. B has good skills, but can we trust her?"

Or maybe you should hand it over to Mr. C, who is both good at talking and doing. But why do you still feel uneasy about him?

So, what exactly builds trust in a workplace environment looks like? In today’s bulletin, let’s explore the formula for building trust with me.

The Trust Equation (Charles H. Green) This formula states that your trust in someone is a combination of three factors: Credibility, Reliability, Intimacy, and is divided by Self-Orientation of that person.

Credibility: Expertise, confidence, and the degree to which you trust their words.

Reliability: Whether their actions are trustworthy. Do they "walk the talk" and act consistently between what they say and do?

Intimacy: Do you feel emotionally and psychologically safe sharing with them? Do you feel they empathize with the issues you’re discussing?

Self-Orientation: Whether their motivations are self-serving or for the collective good.

Let's do the math!

Take Mr. A as an example. He is very reliable, so you score Reliability = 9/10.

However, Mr. A hasn’t clearly demonstrated his capability to handle this project, so Credibility = 7/10.

You feel quite safe confiding work-related and some personal issues with Mr. A, so Intimacy = 8/10.

However, Mr. A often behaves in his self-interest rather than for others. So, Self-Orientation = 8/10.

Thus, in your assessment, Trust in Mr. A = (9/10 + 7/10 + 8/10) / 8/10 = 3.

Trust is not an objective, rational assessment; it is a subjective, emotional evaluation.

Most people tend to rely only on credibility and reliability to build trust with others. But is enhancing knowledge and skills and keeping promises enough?

Certainly not. People often say: “I feel I trust this person because…”. “Feel” is an emotional word and changes depending on the person and context. In the trust formula, the two factors that affect emotions, Intimacy and Self-Orientation, play a crucial role in the final result.

Intimacy is crucial in building trust, especially in personal relationships and teamwork. It shows care and understanding of others, enhancing connection and mutual trust.

Self-Orientation is a divisor, not a simple subtraction. As soon as self-interest increases even slightly, others' trust in you erodes.

How to Build Trust?

Enhance your expertise and knowledge to gain credibility in your words.
Maintain consistency in your actions and keep your promises to earn reliability in your deeds.
Develop empathy to make others feel safe and close. Psychological safety is one of the term that usually ignored but can be implemented to increase trust, read more here.
Balance personal needs with collective needs, and be willing to support others when possible to reduce selfishness in your actions.

Trust, as one of the key to successful leadership, has many myths. Have you known? Find out more in the article here.

Discover Your Inner Leadership Skills with Emotional Intelligence

Are you ready to unlock your true potential and lead with confidence? Join me, Ngan Tran and The New Leaders, as we guide you through the journey of discovering and harnessing your core values using the power of Emotional Intelligence (EQ).

With my background in the Harvard Executive Leadership Program and a Master's in Executive Leadership Coaching, I specialize in EQ leadership training, communication, and effective leadership development. I'm dedicated to helping you achieve personal and professional excellence.

Let's embark on this transformative journey together! Shall we?