I often get asked what is the most important thing to do to engage an employee.  It is not one thing, but many.  However, the most important thing to do is to help them understand they are doing meaningful work.

But what about you? What is the most important thing you can do as a leader to be effective?

Be trustworthy.  When people trust you then they work harder, contribute better ideas, resolve differences, stay longer with your organization and contribute with more passion.

Consider what a friend of mine, Gary Black, said after his retirement dinner where everyone only talked about his consistent integrity rather than his accomplishments:

"...Results are what we produce.  Character is about how we go about producing the results.   In my case, I mistakenly spent a career thinking others were willing to follow me only because of accomplishments.  The sobering question is how many times did my character disappoint my staff and how much more could I have accomplished had I been aware of the importance of character.  Had I realized that, I certainly would have watched more carefully how I went about getting my results."

Do the Meeting Ideas exercise alone or with a group so you can be challenged to consider the implications of your behaviors and words.

MEETING IDEAS

If people trust you they may follow you anywhere and overcome any obstacle in your company's path.  If they do not trust you, then your success will be limited.

Obviously the issue of trust is so broad, books have been written about it.  I'm suggesting that rather than read a book, sit with a healthy smoothie or cup of coffee/tea, or go for a relaxing walk to mull this over.  Here are 7 aspects of being trustworthy to consider:

1.  Values.  Are my company's values clear and measurable, and do I consistently live by them?  (How can you expect people to live by your values if they are unclear, immeasurable or unwritten?)

2.  Be reliable.  Do I always do what I say I will do completely, on time and without excuses?  (Updating people in advance of unavoidable delays can be acceptable occasionally, but when it occurs more than 10% of the time it destroys trust.)

3.  Meet expectations.  Am I fully competent in vital skills and when making commitments clearly communicate the outcomes of my work so when it is complete the expectations of my "clients (other employees, your boss, customers, vendors...) are met or exceeded all the time?  (Some of the time does not indicate great leadership.)

4.  Delegation.  Do I demonstrate trust in others so there is a foundation for them to trust me?  (Trust goes both ways.)

5.  Sincerity.  Do I sincerely care about the people with whom I work?  (Almost everyone has something we can appreciate about them to if we are willing to identify it.)

6.  Accountability.  Do I and any others hold me accountable so that all of my decisions could be on the front page of our local newspaper today and I would not be embarrassed or ashamed?  (This is so simple, yet almost always violated.)

7.  Respect.  Do I speak respectfully of others even when we disagree?  (The way I communicate, or do not, significantly impacts the level of trust people have in you and your organization.)