WHAT WE DO
Dynamic Potential Executive Coaching, LLC was established in 1997 by Amy Green, CEC, PCC.
We are a consortium of highly skilled, deeply committed leaders who are dedicated to each of our clients unique needs. We work with leaders at all levels and stages of their careers. No matter what their title may be, ultimately we see our clients as leaders in their own lives.
HOW WE DEFINE LEADERSHIP
At the core of great leadership lies one remarkable ability that separates good leaders from extraordinary leaders. That is the ability to build and maintain trust.
In all productive human relationships, be it in the workplace and in life, we find one universal component. That is the component of trust. We ask our customers to put their trust in us when we sell them our products. We ask each of our employees to trust that we will provide the support, skills and tools they need to promote our products. We leave our shirts at the dry cleaner and trust that they will be cleaned and pressed and ready at the agreed time. The boss requests a report be completed by Friday and, when we agree to that deadline, he/she trusts that the report will be completed by that date. Even in the simple request of meeting someone for a working lunch, we require a level of trust in this person to show up on time.
In organizations today, one of the costliest and most avoidable breakdowns is the breakdown in Trust. Absent trusting relationships, fear and uncertainty run rampant, and in the workplace, the cost can be measured in poor decisions and even worse performance. How, then, do we gain a better understanding of trust and how do we cultivate this important quality and assess when all or some of the elements to building trust are missing? How, too, do we rebuild trust when it is broken?
Most people believe that trust is automatic: I either trust you or I don’t. If you let me down, I don’t trust you, if you don’t let me down, I do trust you. If only life were that simple! Trust is like a high wire act at the circus. It is a delicate balancing act that requires sure footing at every pass and it is easy to fall at any moment. Fortunately, there is a safety net and we are going to take a close look at what that is and how to use it. First, let’s define trust.
WHAT IS TRUST?
Julio Olalla, internationally renowned Executive Coach says it best, “Trust is the emotion that underlies our ability to coordinate some type of action with others.” [i]
Before we can proceed with coordinating action with others, we must make a judgment as to what is possible or not possible when we develop a relationship. If we break down the elements needed to form a trusting relationship, these elements then become the basis for our ability to evaluate the possibilities for this relationship’s future.
The Newfield Network, an international business and life coaching organization, defines trust “as a positive assessment of another’s sincerity, competence and reliability.” [ii]
I have expanded on this concept to include two additional elements, those of willingness and intent, which I believe, allows the other elements to emerge organically.
The five elements to building and cultivating trust then become Willingness, Sincerity, Competence, Reliability and Intent. When we assess these five elements as being present in a relationship, we are then able to move to coordinate action and we have a strong foundation to believe these actions will be completed.
There have been many studies on the power of building trust in organizations. Truthfully, we don’t need statistics to tell us what is so painfully obvious. Without trust, how can any organization, or family for that matter, thrive? We must take stock of ourselves and determine what is truly important. If relationships are at the core of producing valuable actions that in turn help us grow as a company and as individuals, and if trust is the driving force behind building relationships, it makes sense to do everything in our power to cultivate and nurture trust for long-term personal and professional satisfaction.
Coaching can help you to discover and apply new ways of building and maintaining trust in all domains of your life. Trust is essential to coordinating action and leading organizations towards a common vision, which is ultimately the sign of great leadership.