How to build credibility as a leader #1

Couple of weeks ago, I had written a post about credibility. I had explained what credibility is and why it is so important. I did not mention how to build it. Yeah… I know, I missed the most important part.

Today I will try to put some light on it. The topic is big so I will split it into few posts. This is the second one of the “Credibility” part, enjoy :)

It is proved that people do trust more to the members of their own groups than managers. If you have been working with the team and the team sees you as a leader, most probably you will get higher level of credibility than some leader hired from outside. It is a rather obvious fact, but it has other side of the coin as well. Many organizations promote great developers to team leaders positions and then most of those people are unhappy, their teams are unhappy. Not every great developer has to be a great leader. People should not be forced to do a job that they do not want to do, or they are not ready to do. On the other hand, if you are a leader, try to work with your team. Show your team that you are one of them, that you are part of the team as well. This approach helped me in many situations.

I was struggling to make people trust me, especially that I worked with specialists in four different locations at once. My role was to lead those people, develop common vision for our department (tribe). We had mixed skillset and preferences (Java vs JavaScript). It was difficult and many conflicts were in the air. Additionally, I had to be the person who should tell them which direction take without firing up those conflicts. I was from outside of the organization for 3 of 4 locations. The situation was not easy. What helped me a lot was showing everyone that I was one of them. I tried to work with my teams on technical tasks, show them that their problems are mine as well. I had fun with them but when they were unhappy I was as well. I tried to solve their problems like there were mine.

Another thing, a little bit related to the previous one, is that leaders should be physically present, should be visible. They need to get close to their people to earn their respect and trust. I personally always prefer to sit with people I work with.

I could create a separate post about sentence "Do What You Say You Will Do”. It was written by Brian Johnson and introduced as Law of leadership. This sentence is simple and easy to remember, but it is also powerful and accurate. If you say your team that you will do something, do everything to do so. If you know that you will not be able to keep your promise, do not say anything. People will stop trust you if you will be giving them lofty promises. It may work for a short time but in a longer perspective you will be in a lost position.

I have just introduced 3 simple ideas how good leaders can build credibility. There are many more and I will describe them in next posts.