In Team Building, Trust is Vital

When you're team building, make sure you also build trust among the team members

. Why is that important? Because as human beings, we just naturally work better with people we trust. Team collaboration depends on trust.Teams often have to rally and go the extra mile in order to complete projects or just simply get done the things that must be done. Knowing that everyone is "on the same page" and working towards the common good makes it more likely that people will be willing to do that, and it also builds team motivation.There are also times when one team member needs help, perhaps to meet a tight deadline, to complete an unexpected extra task, to deal with an emergency situation that has arisen, or any number of other circumstances. Being able to rely on colleagues to help out is invaluable to morale as well as to productivity.But in order for people to be available to help one another in this way, there has to be trust among the group. If you are to help me out when I need help, you need to be confident that I will be there when you need my help. That's what trust is all about. In professional sports, they call this "taking one for the team" and it's just as important in a workplace team as it is on the sports field.As the manager, the coach, the team leader, it's your job to foster this trust. If all the people in the department are to be trustworthy, you must certainly set the standard. You, as the leader, must not only be trustworthy yourself, but you must be SEEN to be trustworthy. How do you do that? Well, here are just three simple ways.First, do what you said you'd do. That doesn't mean you'll always do what other people want you to do, and as a manager you know that not all your decisions and actions will be popular. So no, your people won't always like or agree with your decisions, but they will respect the fact that you do what you said you would do.Woody Allen once said that 90% of success is just showing up. I believe that 95% of success is showing up when you said you would and doing what you said you would do. And this practice has the additional advantage of making your people believe in you and trust you. This sets the tone for trust throughout the team.Second, give your team credit when it's due. I've seen too many instances of department heads (notice I don't call them leaders in this case, because they are not) take credit for work that they couldn't have done without their team. Don't make that mistake. If you receive a compliment from someone above you, or even a colleague in another department, on some achievement of the team, make sure you tell that person that the credit goes to your people. And then, just as importantly, make sure you tell your people their achievement has not gone unnoticed. This loyalty to them will be returned in the form of trust.Finally, be fair in your treatment of everyone, and don't play favourites among your people. That's all too easy to do, because we are, after all, human. It's natural to like some people more than others, and there's a human temptation to show a bias towards those we like. But it's not good management practice. Demonstrate through your actions that you value everyone's contribution equally, and the trust your team has in you will go from strength to strengthA team whose members trust one another will be successful. As the manager, you'd do well to start building that trust at the earliest possible moment.

In Team Building, Trust is Vital

By: Helen Wilkie

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