Foster a high trust environment

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Description

Trust is the foundation that enables teams to create great results for the organisation. Without trust, teams can't reach their potential. Trust is an essential element of Psychological Safety which was found by Google's Project Aristotle to be the number one factor differentiating the highest-performing teams.

Trust can be defined as “Choosing to make something important to you vulnerable to the actions of someone else.” [1] Trust is built slowly over time, Brené Brown[2] uses a marble jar metaphor; “We can deposit marbles and build up our sense of trust or withdraw them and degrade that sense of trust through our interactions”.

Research has identified how establishing trust between people affects us. [3] There is a neurological reaction to trusting someone.  When we are intentionally trusted, even by a stranger, the brain produces oxytocin[4]. The enhanced empathy enabled by oxytocin allows humans to quickly form teams and work together effectively.  

Rationale

There are several models and research articles that we have found helpful in understanding how leaders can help foster a high-trust environment. You can find links to these below.

Related Principles

References