‘Trust You’ Trumps ‘Thank You’ In Leadership

I dare you to tell somebody at work this week that you trust him or her and see the response you get. Here is why.

‘Thank You’ are not the most important words a leader can use with his or her team. That’s right, despite what you might have been hearing or reading, there are three words that are much more powerful than ‘thank you.’ These words will create a new level of engagement and elevate your professional relationships to new heights. All of which will lead your team to perform better, be more effective, more proactive, and come up with new innovative ideas and solutions.

The words that carry that much motivational and engagement power are, ‘I Trust You.’ In my experience, letting people know that you trust them creates a new space for so much more creativity, communication, and initiative to enter. ‘I Trust You’ implies so much, such as the fact that you value the individual’s talents, commitment to the organization, experience, and decision-making abilities.

The problem is that too many supervisors and leaders believe that their employees know that they are trusted. Believe me, you would be surprised to know that many in your team might not know that you trust them because they have misinterpreted a certain past behavior on your part, or on the company’s part, as a lack of trust...or simply, because you’ve never told them.

There is a wrong way and a right way of using ‘I Trust You.’

The wrong way is to:

• Not say it.

• Say it and not mean it.

• Say it and follow it with “but” as in “but don’t screw up”, or with “however”, as in “however, check in with me before making any decision.”

• Say it and jump on the person at the first sign of a mistake.

The right way is to:

• Say it and mean it.

• Say it and follow it with, “and” as in, “and if you need my input or advice, don’t hesitate to come talk to me,” or “and, let me know if I can do something to improve our customers’ experiences.”

• Say it and if a mistake is made, help your employee learn from it.

Keep in mind that trusting someone does not mean that they will never make a mistake again. It doesn’t let the supervisor off the hook to hold regular one-on-one or status meetings. It does mean, however, that:

• You believe the person you trust has demo

nstrated the judgment, knowledge, skills, and abilities to do the job you have given them.

• You trust that if they do make an error, they will take the proper corrective action to rectify it.

• Finally, it also means that you trust them to know when they should advise you of an error or issue because the situation might, or has, become bigger than they are and therefore you need to be made aware.