Okay, so the research project I have been working on has brought trust to the forefront for me, and I am looking for it everywhere I go. Only because every person interviewed, all 35 of them, indicated that it was a factor in evaluating information from the school district's administrative team. AND, in another area of life that is close to my heart, turns out trust is important in baseball as well.
For those of you who do not know, Carlos Zambrano has pitched for the Chicago Cubs for the last ten years. The last few have not been memorable, at least not in the winning sense. Instead, Carlos has been known for his temper tantrums, and ultimately walking out on the team last August. So, Carlos has been less then a team player. This week, the Cubs traded him, citing players concerns about whether or not they could trust Big Z to change his ways. A quote from Theo Epstein, Cubs President,
"But Epstein, who took over as president of baseball operations in late October, discovered a recurring theme in conversations with players and front-office executives regarding Zambrano. None of them trusted the mercurial pitcher to change his ways. Epstein had outlined steps Zambrano needed to take to earn his way back with the Cubs, but he said he was skeptical it could happen."
Do other members of your team, the school board, trust that you are a team player?
This is the age of dis-aggregation, individualization, and special interest. From politics to cell phones, it's my way or the highway. Covey has said that integrity+competency=trust. It doesn't seem like we are short on competence, but maybe we are in an integrity depression? Even the abstract concept of integrity is somewhat difficult to capture, being more than honesty.
ReplyDeleteIn going beyond just trust, perhaps one of the key areas of development that state-wide organizations need to focus on is what it means to build and lead with trust.
@bradfordgs