Oh, I know ... it's ME! (Smile)
Okay ... I'd better 'come clean' on that statement, because I really don't want to destroy any measure of TRUST that I may have built with you to this point.
Here's what happened:
Stephen M.R. Covey was the first keynote speaker to address the audience on March 14, 2015 at DEXIO 2015 in Edmonton.
He had just finished giving a terrific presentation titled: "Leading at the Speed of Trust" and a transition was taking place on the stage during a short break in the program. That's when I asked if I could take a photo of him and he invited me to jump into the picture with him! (And as they say, 'the rest is history.')
Stephen M.R. Covey is the author of "The Speed of Trust - The One Thing That Changes Everything". In his presentation, he made a strong business argument for the importance of building trust within high–performing, successful organizations.
In a compelling business case, he made the following three points very clear:
1) Trust is an economic driver, not merely a social virtue.
2) Trust is the #1 competency of leadership needed today.
3) Trust is a learnable competency.
The impact of having trust, or not having trust within an organization is both measurable and quantifiable.
Lower levels of trust lead to longer time lines to compete projects, higher costs, as well as lower levels of energy and satisfaction within an organization's workforce.
Higher levels of trust lead to the quicker completion of projects, lower delivery costs, while producing higher levels of energy and satisfaction within an organization's workforce.
So, imagine for a moment that you're a shareholder or a worker within one of the organizations just described. Which of the two scenarios would you rather be in - Low Trust or High Trust?
NOW - let's bring TRUST back to the topic of Mentorship ...
If the intent of a mentorship relationship is to build the capacity of the individual (and by extension, the organization), at some point the process requires delegating an assignment to competent, trained employees and trusting them with the assigned task.
As leaders, we benefit from developing our people to their fullest potential. While it's been said that 'trust must be earned', if we want our businesses and organizations to grow, we need to allow for TRUST to develop. As trust grows, we can confidently focus our attention to the many other issues and opportunities we face, knowing that we have developed trustworthy individuals within our team.
HOW are you developing TRUST within your organization?
Please leave a comment, and let's share the conversation within our circle of contacts!
