Building trust and credibility is one of the most important steps to influence others and stand out as a leader or expert. It is key to your long term career success!
Every work relationship is set on the foundation of trust. Think about how you form your closest relationships in life. You ask yourself "Can I trust this person?". The trust can be about whatever is most important for you, such as reliability, honesty, or competency, all contributing to build trust and credibility. The trust in work relationships is based on credibility. Your peers, stakeholders, managers, leaders are all asking these questions
What can this person do for me?
What are they good at?
What problem can they take off my hands?
Can I trust them to finish the job?
If you are in a people oriented role, trust and credibility becomes a requirement to do well in your job. There are many ways to establish trust and creditability. Today, I want to focus on just one!
Solve problems that no one else wants to!
Become proactive and take the initiative to solve hard complex problems. Find solutions to long standing issues that have been plaguing the team/organization. Be creative and resourceful and figure out a way. When you solve such problems, you quickly become the go to person. Every time your solution is used by your coworkers, they will think of you and thank you for making their life better. People around you will trust you to get the job done, thus helping you build trust and credibility. Along the way, you will learn many new skills, build relationships and have a sense of accomplishment.
How to Build Trust and Credibility in Your Team: Here Are 10 Steps
✔️ Talk to multiple stakeholders
Talk to different people in different functions and at different levels. This way you will get multiple points of views which will give you a complete picture.
✔️ Ask many questions
Ask them specific questions. Listen and note down all the details. Ask them about their pain points. what is blocking them, slowing them down, keeps them up at night and so on.
✔️ Connect the dots and find a pattern
After gather all your data, look at your notes and establish commonalties. What came up again and again? How are problems related or divergent based on stakeholder function or role?
✔️ Prioritize one key problem
You cannot solve all the problems at once, so prioritize 1-2 key issues that are critical to the business and which will help you gain visibility and credibility. Make sure it is a difficult problem to solve. By focusing on these key challenges, you demonstrate your commitment to addressing critical issues and establishing credibility within your team and organization.
✔️ Identify solutions
Brainstorm on some ideas and come up with multiple solutions. List out pros and cons of each solution. Note down the time and effort it will take to implement.
✔️ Get feedback from few people
Run your solutions ideas by a few people that are willing to give you feedback. Listen and iterate on your ideas to make them better.
✔️ Influence to get buy in
Start talking about the benefits of your solution, why it is important to solve and why now. Start with your feedback group and expand your sphere of influence. Go to the decision maker and pitch your solution.
✔️ Bring people along for the journey
Don't go about doing this alone. Remember, that you are probably doing this alongside your other projects. Work with other people, get their help and even give them some tasks if they are willing. Make them part of your decision making process so they feel invested in your success.
✔️ Follow through
If this idea becomes a major project, it will be easier to find time and resources to get it done. However, at other times, this may be your side project. Continue to chip away at the work so it has the desired impact.
✔️ Showcase the impact
Finally, don't forget to show and tell. All that hard work you put in needs to be seen and heard. Talk about the impact of your work and how you came about the solution. Thank the people who supported you along the way.
Once you start solving the hard problems regularly, you will be seen as a leader. More responsibilities may come your way and you may even get on the path to the next level. Remember, to scale yourself as you take on more responsibilities so you can continue to do great work and have a higher impact. By consistently delivering results and tackling challenges head-on, you'll build trust and credibility within your team and organization.
What are some other ways you have built credibility? Would love to hear from you.
P.S. This is an example of my LinkedIn post. Don't forget to follow me there for more bite sized content.
Do you want to get to the next level and build strong leadership skills. If you want someone to help bring the best out of you, I can help. Contact to set up an introductory consultation.
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