Trust - A Cornerstone for Effective Teams

Trust is a cornerstone of team excellence. Elements that help to create and encourage trust on a team include; sharing personal information, being vulnerable and unfiltered openness.

Share Personal Information - no need to share our deepest, darkest secrets or inappropriate details in the work setting. Allow team members to know who you truly are; the things you love, what inspires you, what you're proud of. This enables an atmosphere of trust to develop where we are being authentic and open.

Be Vulnerable - opening up allows others to have a deeper understanding about who you are and why you behave the way you do. This, in turn allows for trust to build as relationships are strengthened by openness and honesty without judgement.

Unfiltered Openness - knowing that you trust your teammates encourages open, unfiltered communication. This component of trust helps team members feel confident to say what they mean and articulate concerns or issues without judgement.

Encouraging interactions on a personal level while creating the safe space for team members to be vulnerable and open without filters will improve the level of trust on a team. Members will have an understanding of each other that goes beyond the day to day. It is that human level of connection that makes the difference in building authentic trust within a team. A collective vulnerability allows unfiltered openness to emerge. Creating trust on your team is a cornerstone to effective, high performing teams.