Authenticity in Leadership Requires Courage
Yesterday (October 3, 2023), I did something I wouldn't ‘normally’ do in an Executive Partnering Session. The topic of TRUST among the team came up. It was the perfect opportunity to review the components of the trust equation: (Credibility + Reliability + Authenticity) / Self-Orientation.
At the end of the session, I made a PSA about the link between alcohol consumption and breast cancer and my work as a sobriety coach. I shared some details about my personal story. Details I wouldn't have been comfortable sharing in the past for fear of judgment.
As a “solo-preneur,” I'm keenly aware of my work, my reputation, my brand, being linked to my financial stability. What would clients think about me “being sober”? What assumptions would they make? 🤔 And how could that impact my business?
AUTHENTICITY is about being true to yourself, your core values, and talents. It's about having strong ethics and standing up for what you believe in. For me, the PSA was the opportunity to plant a seed and share some knowledge on an issue that I believe is really important.
This story isn’t about my sobriety journey, it’s about BUILDING TRUST among teammates to build peak performance teams and deliver infrastructure projects successfully.
Sometimes authentic leadership requires courage to share a bit of personal information. Or vulnerability to share information you might not normally share. It helps teammates start to see one another as human beings and have a little more empathy for one another.
Delivering a mega-project is hard work! To build even better teams (and not kill each other in the process or hate your job), start working on the third component, AUTHENTICITY.
Using the Trust Equation as our guide:
✅ What if we consider CREDIBILITY a given? All teams have really smart, credible people. Encourage the SMEs to talk directly to the SMEs in their language to resolve technical issues more quickly.
✳️ RELIABILITY is built by delivering on your commitments. That's simple -- do what you said you're going to do; meet deadlines.
💚 If you really want to dial up the TRUST in your team, work on building AUTHENTIC relationships with your teammates. Regardless of which “side” they are on.
