Credible, but are you Trusted?
Does your new team know and trust you?
In December 2023, I published “So you are the new leader…why should we follow you?” The article was for persons moving into a new role as leaders of an existing team. The first step for these leaders is to become credible, the leadership effect of Personal Leadership, one of the domains of the Six Domains of Leadership™ (SDL) model. The model proposes that leaders become credible through their behaviors with respect to vision, authenticity, and dedication.
As important, but maybe even more so, the leader must be trusted by, and trust, the team. Trust is the cornerstone of leadership, why the Six Domains of Leadership puts Relational Leadership, the domain that yields Trust, in the bottom middle of the pyramid. All other domains rest and support Relational Leadership, the domain that yields Trust.
What are the behaviors that yield Trust? What should a leader do to have followers trust them? And, similarly, for the leader to trust their followers?
The SDL model has three behaviors, sub-domains in the language of SDL, that will yield the effect of Trust:
- Concern & Respect
- Fair Treatment
- Understanding
These are behaviors that leaders must exhibit as they get to know their team members. So not only is the leader trying to be credible, but they are working on being trusted and trusting.
The leader, in their interactions with the team members, must demonstrate Concern & Respect for the team members interests and desires. As a new leader, team members are going to try to bring up things that maybe they were unable to get from the prior leader. The leader should listen attentively (active listening) to understand the member’s message. What is the member interested in? Concerned about? Who are they? As a leader, this is a prime opportunity to get to know your team members as well as get insights into what is going on in the team (Contextual Leadership). What are hot buttons for the team members? How do they feel about the team?
As you carry your conversations with team members, remember to be fair (Fair Treatment) so that all team members feel equally heard. The temptation will be to meet with those who are friendly in their demeanor and express opinions aligned with yours. Don’t just listen to them. Just as carefully listen to those who may express opinions that disagree with yours. This is great information that will help you determine what is the status of the team and its efforts, and how you will address the things that need to change. But if you only listen to those who you agree with, you’ll miss a prime opportunity.
The third behavior, Understanding, addresses the need for the leader to try and understand their team members concerns. It is more than just listening to them and saying “I hear you”. It entails fairly assessing their information, understand their needs, and use this information as you define what actions will need to be taken.
Note that these behaviors are relevant not just with team members, but also with the team’s stakeholders. I remember taking over the support of a computer system many years ago. The feedback from my manager was that the customer was very difficult if not impossible to work with, and that I should avoid him as much as possible. Thinking that following that recommendation was not my style and that it would not work, I went ahead and visited the customer. Low and behold, I found the customer very receptive and reasonable as I explained the backlog of work we had and asked for his help in prioritizing it, so that we could better support them. Amazing what showing Concern & Respect, Fair Treatment, and Understanding yielded! That customer became someone I looked forward to work with.
Also note that you should start to engage your team and stakeholders even before you take on the leadership role, if possible. Early on, everyone is looking forward to the new regime and how things will improve. This is the honeymoon period. Use it to benefit the situation! Everyone wants to help. Later on, they may decide that you are not as great as they hoped and not want to cooperate.
As mentioned in the prior article, a couple of good resources are The First 90 Days and Right from the Start. I’ve found these books excellent when starting a new role. It is not that you don’t know how to do it. They provide guidance so that you don’t forget key things.
You can also use AI and ask it for help. I just asked it the following prompt:
“I’m taking over a role in an existing team as a leader. What things should I consider in my first 90 days? Limit the list to 10 items and prioritize them in importance.”
It yielded a good list, most fit very well with the Six Domains of Leadership model. The 10 items, with relevant SDL domains in parenthesis where appropriate. I’ve bolded the Relational Leadership ones — 3 of 10!
- Understand the team and culture (Contextual Leadership)
- Build Relationships and trust (Relational Leadership)
- Communicate clearly and consistently (Personal Leadership)
- Assess team strengths and weaknesses (Relational Leadership)
- Set clear and achievable goals (Personal Leadership)
- Identify quick wins (Personal and Inspirational Leadership)
- Create a 90-day plan
- Listen actively and be open to feedback (Relational Leadership)
- Evaluate existing processes and systems
- Develop a learning mindset (Responsible Leadership)
So, the Six Domains of Leadership can be extremely helpful to a new leader as well as to existing leaders. Leverage it next time you take over a team or, even better, whenever you want to lead.
Books mentioned:
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Contact me at jose@coachsolera.com to find out how to improve your leadership.
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