This is what renowned management guru, Stephen R. Covey wrote, "...trust is the glue of life. It's the most essential ingredient effective communication. It's the foundational principle that holds all relationships."
If you reflect on this statement, you'll realise that trust is the foundation of everything that happens in life, from our relationships, marriage, business partnerships, friendships to our interface with the authorities and our government.
It is trust that increases loyalty and the willingness to stay with a company.
I have had to learn this the hard way. When I notice good people leaving my organisation and they don't have anywhere better to go to, I know their departure is triggered by some trust deficiency. It could be with their line-leader, colleagues, or me.
Trust decreases stress levels and hostility in the work environment.
Trust is a doorway to persuasion, sharing and developing ideas.
If I want to get one of my team members to do something for my companies or to find that extra gear in themselves to push harder, I know that first, they need trust me. As eloquent as I can be, I simply cannot persuade them to do anything, if they don't really trust me.
Trust is a key ingredient to coaching and improving employee performance.
In my leadership coaching sessions, it takes me at least two or three sessions before a coachee eventually opens up to tell me what he or she truly thinks. This can only happen if they trust that whatever is spoken will remain between us.
I can only help a coachee unblock their obstacles when they speak with me openly. But they must be sure that I will maintain their trust and confidentiality. It's a form of "quid-pro-quo" meaning literally "what for what" in Latin. In common parlance – "advantage granted in return for something".
Much of our life is based on trust built on quid-pro-quo. And our work-life is absolutely founded on principles of confidence, reliability and trust.
If you have ever worked in an environment where trust didn't exist, you'll know how rough it is.
You would have experienced a workplace where people were unreliable, inadequate, disloyal, uncommunicative, and inconsistent in their work and their moods.
The moment trust is present at work, you will find that your colleagues take ownership of their responsibilities, everyone is able to help each other, people speak highly of one another and communicate regularly. Overall productivity increases exponentially.
Trust is the only thing that provides a safe place for people to share their strengths and weaknesses, struggles and aspirations, and unlock their potential, individually and as a team.
But here is an alarming statistic.
Edelman, the largest public relations firm in the world recently conducted the "Trust Barometer", surveyed 33,000 people in 28 countries. And, the survey concluded that one in three people don't trust their employer.
This is a damning indictment of leadership and management. We as Malaysian employers need to work on a few things fast to rebuild all that lost trust.
It simply beggars belief if bosses don't work on increasing trust. An upsurge in productivity, in the long run only hinges on developing, nurturing and sustaining trust at the workplace.
You'll need to ask yourself some hard questions to grow trust with your team.
Are you open to listening to your employees and seeking their ideas, suggestions and opinions? For a lot of Malaysian bosses, it requires you to stop being a "know-it-all". Acknowledge that people around you have views and thoughts that matter.
Can you include your employees in the decision-making process? When you start doing this, you will begin to see your team taking ownership.
Do you set and communicate consistent expectations for individual and team performance? There's nothing more flabbergasting than bosses who hire top talent but remain inconsistent in expressing their direction, and communicating clearly and concisely how they evaluate results.
Can you tell your team the truth and follow up by standing by your promises? This is tough. But at the end, your team needs to be able to believe you and have belief in your abilities.
And how do you actually treat your team? You have to treat everyone with the same dignity and respect that you want to receive yourself. There is no place for cronyism and favouritism. This is so common in Malaysian companies, and it is totally damaging to your business.
Your organisation's success will be dependent on building on these elements of trust. If you work on being transparent; showing your team respect; allowing them room to voice their opinions; communicating thoughtfully; and remain fair, you will build a high-trust work environment.