Leaders Know Credibility is Driven by Behavior

For context, let’s review Covey’s Five Waves of Trust.
1. Self trust
2. Relationship trust
3. Organizational trust
4. Market trust
5. Societal trust

This post goes further in depth on the importance of the first wave.

The first wave of trust: Self Trust

Self Trust, with a focus on inspiring confidence and building credibility, is the foundation of trust. As such, if we can’t stay confident in our ability to keep commitments, walk our talk, and meet goals, we will have a credibility gap.

Credibility is crucial to how others view our behaviors. Franklin Covey’s “Cores of Credibility” start with you. The Cores of Credibility are:

Integrity – consistent values, beliefs, and behavior.

Intent – genuine concern and caring for others; seeking mutual benefit.

Capabilities – our capacity to accomplish tasks.

Results – our track record of getting the right things done.

Questions to ask yourself about your credibility.

Integrity – Do you make and keep commitments to yourself and others? Do you stand for something and live by it consistently?

Intent – Do you believe in abundance? In other words, are there enough recognition or rewards for everyone? Do you make a habit of sharing the why behind what you share or ask? Is it clear that you’re motivated by team interest rather than self-interest?

Capabilities – Do you leverage your talents and strengths to get the most done with others? Do you stay relevant by finding opportunities to make unique and valuable contributions?

Results – Do you have a results mindset rather than an activity mindset? In other words, are you mindful of your activities, staying busy versus ensuring work leads to results? Do you avoid a quitting and/or a victim mentality? Instead, do you stay strong through difficult processes?

We grow credibility by showing integrity through our humility and courage. Additionally, we care and act in the best interests of everyone. We can identify and improve our talents, attitudes, skills, knowledge, and style. Likewise, we know our results matter. Thus, past accomplishment and current performance positively count toward our anticipated performance.

Therefore, trust yourself, follow-through, and project confidence. There’s no substitute for actual observable results.

Credibility is key to our Self-Trust. So, what could you do with that information? I advise working with someone you trust to help you understand which of the four cores above might hold some growth opportunity for you.

The second wave of trust: Relationship Trust

The Second Wave is where influence begins to spread. Relationship Trust is built by thirteen behaviors that need the above Cores of Credibility as a foundation (we will explore these in latter posts). The thirteen behaviors work for us in three groups.

  1. Character-based behaviors include straight talk, showing respect, being transparent, righting wrongs, and showing loyalty.
  2. Competence-based behaviors include delivering results, getting better, confronting reality, clarifying expectations, and staying accountable.
  3. Behaviors that combine both character and competence are listening first, keeping commitments, and extending trust.

In the next thirteen posts, we will explore each of these, along with the ways we fake them and cause an unintentional breach of trust.

Thanks for reading,

Alan Feirer

See more blog posts on The Speed of Trust.

#1: Leaders Invest in Trust
#2: Credibility Gaps: Leaders Know the Waves of Trust
#3: Behavior, Credibility, and the Wrong Kinds of Trust

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