You can imagine that I have devoured quite a bit of reading material about leadership and what makes leaders great. And, there are numerous books to read on this subject. I have written about some of these things in detail over the years.
Courtesy of Andrea Denner
But, this morning I have been thinking about the bottom line – not the bottom line of the income statement (profit), but the bottom line of what makes a great leader.
The bottom line
As I think back through all I have read and all the leaders I have personally admired, the answer becomes pretty clear. The bottom line of leadership, the place where it all starts or fails is…TRUST.
"If I don’t trust you I am not going to follow you no matter how good you are at anything else." - Joe Denner
And I’m not the not the only one. There are many others who share my perspective.
Some questions to consider
• Are you trustworthy?
• Can people believe what you say?
• Do your actions confirm or contradict your words?
• What are you doing that is eroding the trust of your people?
Make the change
That is one thing you can do today to build trust with those who are following your lead?
Taking active steps in this direction could be the most important thing you have to work on in your leadership. Don’t wait until tomorrow.