Trust and Respect

by Scott Airitam

President, Scott Airitam's Leadership Systems, LLC

I really want you to think about this one.

If you have ever been in a session (speech, workshop, or class) of ours where the concept of either Trust or Respect have come up, then you know that we consider both a choice. If you are the Leader of a team, you have to choose to trust the team members, even if they burn you, because to do anything else leaves you with an inability to be a "capital L" Leader. A person cannot Lead if they do not trust those who are following, and they cannot be a Leader if the people following do not trust them. Same with respect.

So, in my world, over the past couple of weeks, I have been burned. It doesn't happen very often with me, because Trust and Respect are two conditions I work very hard to create. Nevertheless, like those I help in my profession, I am called to be a Leader the right way.

Suffice it to say, that a small percentage of people I Lead have decided to pursue an agenda different than the rest of the team and have targeted me with accusations and such. It's been tough, but it is always a good lesson to be in this position. It is time to learn.

In this situation I was faced with one of the early questions of Leadership. In order to maintain a high performance team, I have choices: a) either I choose to trust and try to turn the situation around if I believe it to be salvageable, or b) I decide trust is not an option and I move to get rid of them. In making that evaluation, I promise you it would be easier to get rid of those in question and proceed with my agenda. However, I have seen the value that these people bring to the equation and I know it would be in the team's best interest if I worked on the situation a bit more. That means talking to those involved and figuring out why they've chosen the path they did. It might shed some light showing me what I may have done intentionally or unintentionally to create the conditions that allowed this situation to arise.

This is the type of insight a great Leader brings to the table. I will admit, that there is a time in any organization where there is a bad fit--and when that becomes the determination, it is in the team's interest for the Leader to step up and do the tough work--letting people go.

I thought I'd post this because it's a good example of how we walk the talk around here, but it is a better example of a real-world situation and the options we actually have if we stop and identify them.