Trust is built. Three expectations that every leader must meet to build trust (Part 3).

It’s important to understand how trust is viewed within your ministry context.

Your leadership is built on a foundation of trust. Without trust, you cannot lead.

Participation in a healthy relationship with a healthy leader significantly increases the level of trust an individual has in leadership.

Increasingly, our dominant stance as a society is one of distrust. According to the recent global report issued by Edelman, a firm that has studied trust for more than 20 years, “society’s default emotion” is distrust:

“Nearly 6 in 10 people across [dozens of] countries say their default tendency is to distrust until they see evidence to the contrary.”

Researchers warn that this decline—this default emotion—has devolved to crisis levels. As a leader, you need to carefully consider how this stance might be influencing those in your ministry context.

Don’t forget that people are continually evaluating their levels of trust in you and your leadership. Trust is only ever lent. Be careful with any assumptions you may be holding.

I also want to encourage you to keep in mind that researchers have noted that participation in a healthy relationship significantly increases the level of trust an individual has in leadership. How you approach leadership—your leadership style and your conduct as a leader—has a direct impact on your relationships and trustworthiness. When you understand the purpose of your position and its limits and act accordingly with humility, you cultivate trust.

Trust is built. It can be strengthened as you meet the trust-related expectations of those you are leading.

There are three specific trust-related expectations that every leader must meet:

Integrity
Integrity is the third trust-related expectation.

The area of integrity is concerned with adherence to predictable and appropriate patterns and principles. Adherence to predictable and appropriate patterns is a matter of consistency. Trust is built as a leader consistently conducts themselves according to an appropriate and accepted standard.

This consistency helps stabilize a ministry. It creates a sense of security for people.  

Trust is built as a leader consistently conducts themselves according to an appropriate and accepted standard.

Again, it is not necessary to draft a comprehensive list of the practices of a leader with integrity but in his work on trust, Henry Cloud observed the following six practices can help leaders attend to the integrity needs in their context:

1. Leaders with integrity are truthful. They strive to be honest with others and themselves.

2. Leaders with integrity are connected. They invest and are invested in the lives of others.

3. Leaders with integrity are transparent. They seek to be appropriately open and vulnerable.

4. Leaders with integrity are committed. They actively engage in advancing mission.

5. Leaders with integrity are proactive. They attend to issues, concerns, and challenges.

6. Leaders with integrity are responsive. They are continually learning and growing.

An on-demand video series on how succession planning can help ministries advance their mission.

Succeeding In Succession is an on-demand video series on how succession planning can help ministries advance their mission. This series is designed to help leaders and ministries sustain organizational health even as they experience a leadership change.

Everything you need for this series is right here.

There are 10 sessions, plus 5 additional bonus sessions. Each session has its own set of presentation slides and an accompanying handout. Together these act as an interactive learning experience.

You can choose to work through this series over time taking one session at a time or bundle all the sessions together at once for a team retreat or simply pick and choose sessions that will be most helpful for you. The best approach will best fit your context.