Building a trustworthy and effective team that can work in both good and bad times requires a solid foundation of integrity in the workplace. Why is that so? Sincerity, respect, and vulnerability are all aspects of integrity. Achieving the highest levels of engagement and productivity requires these three qualities.
By allowing yourself to be open to change and criticism, you purposefully position yourself for success when you decide to lead with integrity.
As a result, you reveal your true mental condition and encourage others to do the same. Leaders can give their team a sense of purpose by actively including them in their goals and objectives.
Here are some pointers for promoting trust and demonstrating moral leadership.
How to Be an Integrate Leader
Integrity in leadership is not for the weak of the heart. It requires feeling, critical thought, and a readiness to hear other people’s viewpoints in the team’s interest.
Integrity-driven high-level executives know these essential components for success and deliberately choose to incorporate them into their daily discussions.
Today’s leaders must be conscious of their behavior and respect the opinions of their team members if they are to lead with integrity. Although it isn’t complicated, achieving it requires intention and persistence.
- Have difficult discussions early
Early communication will help to build trust and, more importantly, respect. In the workplace, difficult conversations are unavoidable, so good luck attempting to avoid them.
They are crucial because where there are problems, human emotions, and feelings are involved, and businesses are there to address problems.
This idea is understood by those who lead with integrity, and they make the conscious decision to own it at every turn. They frame discussions by posing questions, assessing the subject’s significance, and attempting to take an unbiased stance. They employ emotional intelligence to comprehend both points of view and come up with answers as they progress through the conversation. The key to success is to keep things straightforward, particularly when you don’t want to have a conversation but must.
- When it comes to communication, being clear is kind
This idea can benefit relationships for a lifetime, whether they are with your partner or coworkers.
Kim Scott discusses the idea of employing “clear is kind” in communication with peers and coworkers in her book Radical Candour.[2] She found that hazy communication and a lack of clarity led to further issues. She, therefore, concurs with the statement “caring personally and challenging directly.”
In particular, when most leaders try to offer feedback, they strive to appear sympathetic and protect the person hearing it in order to lessen the blow.
The issue with this strategy is that it doesn’t benefit either party and can really make matters worse in the long term. Peers will continue to perform poorly if they do not get the essential feedback regarding how well they are meeting their obligations or expectations.
Additionally, this might harm the group or prevent them from making the necessary adjustments to improve their execution. Being forthright and being a jerk are two different things. Those in positions of leadership with integrity are aware of the distinction and confidently tread this line.
- Be Open-Minded / Transparent
More than simply your words are picked up by your peers and colleagues. Your capacity to lead with integrity and establish trust with your team can be dramatically impacted by body language, nuanced expressions, and analyzing things you didn’t say.
You must be conscious of your behavior and open about your motivations if you want to lead with integrity. Be honest if you don’t have a solution to a problem.
For instance, are external things outside the office the reason for your miserable day? Inform your coworkers within reason. Or if you’re having trouble in a new position and don’t feel sufficiently prepared to handle it on your own? Request assistance.
Because it demonstrates that you are vulnerable, open to criticism, and willing to make mistakes in order to get better, this transparency can be essential for achievement and team building. Your team will be able to identify with these elements and be more willing to follow suit.
Being open and honest is worthwhile!
- Admit Faults, Then Move On
Everyone makes errors. It just depends on whether you decide to acknowledge them. Businesses are there to address problems, and mistakes happen when there are difficulties.
However, an error is just a label; what counts is what you do with it. Many of the world’s greatest discoveries started out as mistakes that evolved into wildly successful ventures and businesses.
Trial and error can be wonderful, especially in business. We unfortunately rarely question this belief since traditional schools educate us that making mistakes is wrong. But in business, taking calculated chances and making mistakes is the key to success because it enables an organization to pick up new information quickly.
Accept your mistakes as part of the journey. Be honest about your mistakes and the following learning opportunities, regardless of who made the mistake.
Adopting this mindset will reduce the stigma associated with making mistakes and create a safe environment for trying new things. Innovation occurs through deliberate, repetitive trial and error, not in an echo chamber. The real value is found in learning from such mistakes.
- Display Vulnerability
Perfectionism is a myth. However, those who attempt to portray it frequently fail miserably.
Being weak or prescient does not imply being vulnerable. It simply means being who you truly are, without any restrictions. According to Brene Brown’s research, the foundation of human connection is vulnerability and being true to who you are.
Developing genuine relationships with your peers might have impacts that may endure far longer than your employment. Additionally, you will get the most out of people when you get to know them because both parties are willing to put in more effort to make the team successful. Being sincere and honest won’t cost you anything, but in the long term, it can make you rich.
- Say “I Don’t Know” When You Don’t
The phrase “fake it til you make it” may be applicable in some circumstances, but it won’t help you when you’re part of a team and have to make decisions.
The statement “I don’t know” can be one of the most empowering ones in your vocabulary because it conveys an attitude of openness and willingness to hear different viewpoints. It also demonstrates your humanity. And although it might be unsettling, it’s the truth.
Why do we try so hard to act like we’re not flawed human beings when we are? It’s overvalued to celebrate those who successfully complete important jobs, whether they are visually pleasing or financially rewarding.
Influencers only share their best images. And it’s difficult to believe folks who boast about their financial situation when they rarely disclose the names of their checking or savings accounts. It takes a willingness to know to actively choose to lead with integrity. And by doing so, you’ll be able to decide who to ask for advice from in the future.
- Request feedback before providing it.
When you actively request candid input from a coworker, you start a discourse that can help foster high-level talks and interactions. By requesting feedback initially, you encourage reciprocity from your colleague and establish a give-and-take relationship.
Feedback is a given, particularly in business. Businesses are problem-solvers, making ongoing, genuine feedback essential to their success. The people who achieve extraordinary things are those who are able to both receive and give feedback. They have the capacity to cooperate with others in order to accomplish objectives bigger than themselves.
Additionally, we need to learn how to get around our emotions when the ego is present. When you are willing to risk your ego in order to forge a better connection, you are acting with integrity as a leader. A team’s relationships can make or ruin it.
- Listen to understand but not respond
How many of us continue to make this error? We are conversing with someone while seated next to them when they abruptly ask, “What do you think?” and we are unable to respond. It’s embarrassing, but more importantly, it’s just plain rude.
Sadly, this occurs more frequently than we’d like to think. Our people are largely preoccupied. We aren’t really engaged even when we are.
Being mentally and emotionally present looks and feels considerably different than being physically there. Integrity in leadership requires attentive listening and comprehension.
To build trustworthy relationships, we must put thought and meaning into the words and phrases we use when speaking with coworkers.
Our body language and absence of interruptions communicate that we are actively listening. To demonstrate that you’re trying to comprehend them, you should be able to summarise what they said and follow it up with a deft solution to the query or issue they raised.
Just like a thoughtful conversation, building trust requires time. Active listening will help you make informed decisions and see your connections develop.
- Start by keeping the end in mind.
Putting time, effort, and resources into a relationship is an ongoing process in leadership. However, if you don’t know where you want to go, you won’t know if you will get there or not.
Stephen Covey spelled forth the principles for performance and success in life in his New York Times Best Seller, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.
It’s interesting to note that the second of the seven habits was to “begin with the end in mind.” Not because he thought it was cool, but rather because he understood that success required it.
As you choose to lead with integrity, you’ll come to understand that what you do today has an impact on tomorrow. Each day counts. Furthermore, if you choose to start with the end in mind, you can reverse engineer the desired outcome and work backward to produce it.
Each person’s definition of success is unique. For every person, it doesn’t necessarily boil down to their financial objectives.
For instance, getting there may need a different strategy for every person, which is why individuality counts. With this method, you can ensure the road to success and facilitate a high-level success roadmap.
Final Reflections
Integrity in leadership begins with simple routines. They will eventually result in fantastic outcomes and the achievement of great objectives. In addition, Barry O’Reilly advises “Think big, but start small.”
You’ll be able to lead with integrity and establish relationships of trust with your peers and coworkers thanks to this method. People who have achieved success in business or in life will tell you that it all comes down to relationships. Make sure to consciously invest in your dream team as you build it.
It’s the wisest financial move you can make for your company.
