Successful leaders know how to build trust and become a trusted partner

If you lead a team now or aspire to lead a team, one of the most important skills to develop is asking yourself the right questions. If we leave perception and interpretation unattended, the chance for unintentional consequence soars. Asking yourself the right questions will keep you “others first” focused when serving your team. So here are three questions to help you be a more effective leader:

Am I building people or am I building my dream and using people to do it?

People who feel used with no reward, either verbal, financial or some other benefit, will have difficulty supporting your leadership. Recognition to peers and representation to managers and direct reports builds trust. Trust is what every leader needs and wants. When others dreams come true, yours will also.

Do I care enough to confront people when it will make a difference?

Understanding how to have courageous conversations will also help create a sense of trust. When conflict or confrontation takes place or needs to, remember to professionalize not personalize. Making the conflict or the issue a third party will separate the conflict from the contributor and keep trust intact. So, questions like “How can you and I address this issue?”

Am I listening to respond , or am I listening to hear?

When having a conversation with a team member, crafting your response while the co-worker is still talking, or interrupting to make your point, sends the message that you are not really interested in their input. So, impose a governor on your responses then listen and make mental notes. Then use those mental notes to ask questions that will build relationship equity.

What results can I expect?

1. People become your most valuable asset.
2. You will become a gravitational model for others to follow
3. You will become the trusted leader.