If you didn’t already know, the most significant factor impacting your job satisfaction is your relationship with your direct manager.
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Not surprisingly, clients often bring me stories about the difficulty of working with their bosses. It’s not always that these supervisors are bullies or tyrants; it’s simply that many employees don’t prioritize building a good relationship with their manager.
The value of a good relationship is that it gives you a solid foundation when stressful times arise. Without one, you don’t have the open communication and sense of trust needed to resolve issues between you quickly.
If they go unaddressed, these are issues over which you could grow fatigued and frustrated—and eventually, quit.
Instead, you should have a strategic plan to “manage up” and figure out how to work with your manager more effectively. No matter how good or bad your manager may be, it’s vital—and, honestly, it’s your job—to make this relationship work.
Why leave the quality of that relationship solely in your manager’s hands? Here’s what you can do to take charge and start managing up.
As a manager, building trust with your team is absolutely essential. Trust is the foundation for collaboration, engagement, productivity and retention. Without it, even the most talented teams will underperform.
In this comprehensive guide, I’ll provide 14 powerful tips to start building trust and stronger connections as a manager.
Why Trust Matters
Here’s why building trust should be a top priority:
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Trust increases engagement – Employees who trust leaders are more engaged, passionate and loyal.
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Trust enables collaboration – Team members need trust to share ideas, give honest feedback and work together.
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Trust improves performance – Teams with high trust achieve better results, productivity and innovation.
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Trust reduces turnover – Employees who trust their manager are less likely to leave the company.
The impact is clear. As a manager, making trust a priority will benefit your team’s performance on every level. Follow these tips to get started.
1. Listen First
Listening builds trust quickly. When you listen closely to team members:
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They feel heard, valued and respected.
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You gain crucial context for their needs and perspective.
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You show genuine interest in what matters to them.
So listen more than you speak. Give team members your complete, undivided attention.
2. Share the Big Picture
When you share company goals, priorities and plans with your team, it demonstrates trust in them.
Increase transparency by explaining:
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How their work contributes to strategic goals
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What new developments or challenges the company faces
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Where things currently stand on key initiatives
This context empowers them to do their best work.
3. Solicit Regular Feedback
Actively asking for feedback shows you value team members’ input. It also helps identify issues early before they become problems.
Schedule regular 1-on-1s to check in and get feedback. Hold skip level meetings with your manager and team members too.
Make it easy to share anonymous feedback through surveys as well. Then, act on the feedback you receive.
4. Recognize and Appreciate
Recognizing team members’ contributions is a simple yet powerful way to build trust. People want to feel valued and appreciated.
Make recognition frequent and specific. Thank individuals for recent wins in team meetings or 1-on-1s.
Send appreciation through emails, cards or small rewards. A little recognition goes a long way.
5. Communicate Openly and Honestly
Keeping people informed builds trust. Share information openly and avoid holding things close to the vest.
Be transparent about challenges the company is facing. Explain the reasons behind decisions. Clarify any uncertainties.
Also be open about what you don’t know and are still figuring out. No one expects you to have all the answers.
6. Deliver on Promises
Follow through consistently on your commitments, no matter how small. Don’t overpromise either – make realistic commitments you can keep.
If your schedule changes and you can’t meet a deadline, proactively communicate that early. Don’t leave team members wondering.
Reliability and accountability matter hugely in building trust.
7. Show Vulnerability
As a leader, showing you’re human builds trust and connection. Occasionally acknowledge when:
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You feel anxious or overwhelmed.
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You’ve made a mistake or were wrong.
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You’re seeking others’ expertise to complement gaps.
Being vulnerable establishes that we’re all imperfect and dealing with challenges. And that’s ok.
8. Empower and Delegate
Trust your team by empowering them with larger responsibilities. Delegate tasks and decisions based on their skills.
Make it clear you support their decisions and have their backs. Offer guidance if needed but avoid micromanaging.
Empowering people shows tremendous trust and enables them to grow their skills.
9. Offer Support and Mentorship
Investing time to coach and mentor team members strengthens trust and development.
Offer to:
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Have informal mentoring chats.
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Review their goals and create development plans.
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Brainstorm how to navigate roadblocks.
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Give constructive feedback to improve skills.
Make it clear your door is always open to provide guidance.
10. Address Issues Quickly
Don’t avoid or linger on potentially contentious issues. Address problems head on through candid but caring conversations.
If team members raise difficult feedback, listen empathetically. Clarify details without getting defensive. Collaborate on solutions.
Handling difficult situations constructively shows you can be trusted to face challenges together.
11. Model Integrity and Ethics
Your team watches your every move. Set an example by embodying integrity and ethical behavior.
Be a role model when it comes to:
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Treating everyone respectfully.
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Making wise choices, not expedient ones.
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Admitting mistakes and taking ownership.
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Keeping your word, even when it’s tough.
Your actions shout louder than words. Model the conduct you expect from others.
12. Get to Know Your Team
Take interest in team members as individuals, not just employees.
Ask about their:
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Families, hobbies, passions.
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Career goals and development areas.
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What motivates them and makes them happy.
Get to know what matters most to each person. This personal linkage builds deep bonds of trust.
13. Encourage Camaraderie
Bring the team together in fun, informal ways to foster camaraderie and familiarity.
Organize team events like:
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Group lunches, picnics or coffee.
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Volunteering activities.
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Recreational outings.
Camaraderie leads to stronger trust, communication and collaboration.
14. Express Appreciation
Sincerely recognize your team for their contributions. Thank them for their dedication, commitment and the trust they’ve placed in you.
Celebrate and acknowledge team wins – big or small. Make appreciation a frequent habit, not just a once-a-year event.
Gratitude and appreciation are incredibly meaningful and build bonds of trust daily.
Building unwavering trust requires dedication, care and time. But it’s one of the most worthwhile investments a manager can make. Your team’s potential is unlimited when built on trust.
Develop a Positive Relationship
If you think about it, you spend more time with your manager than with nearly any other person in your life. Yet so many people leave the nurturing and tending of this relationship to chance—or neglect it completely.
Instead, intentionally get to know your manager as a person. I’m not saying you need to plan a camping trip or become best buds. But get a sense for who he or she is as a person. Where did she come from? How did she get where she is now? What are the lessons she learned along the way?
Simple questions that help you to get to know one another can go a long way toward helping you understand your manager’s goals, perspective, and behavior—and respond accordingly.
Tell Him or Her How to Best Use Your Talents
Research shows that great managers uncover what’s unique about each person on the team—and then exploit the heck out of it.
In order for your boss to do that, you need to tell him or her what your talents are and how you can use those powers for good in the organization and to serve his or her success.
What are your strengths? What does your Myers-Briggs or DISC typology say about you? How do you deal with pressure, conflict, deadlines, and time management? What assets do you bring to the table—and how do they complement your manager’s strengths?
Once you have a firm grasp on these things, have a conversation about how best to leverage what you bring to the organization. Managing up is a process of combining the best of both of you to create success for everyone.
How to Build Trust within Your Team – Executive Coaching for Leaders
How do you build trust as a manager?
While it’s important to put trust in your team, make sure you still perform your duties as the group’s manager. Consider these additional tips for building trust as a manager: Being consistent means that you keep your commitments. For example, if you promise to meet with your employees within a week, make sure that you follow through with that.
How to build trust at work?
Learning how to build trust at work is critical if you’re going to be successful as an employee, a manager, or an effective leader. Oftentimes, the first step to building trust is building rapport . If you don’t have trust, it’ll be more difficult to communicate and coordinate with your peers or colleagues.
Why do managers need to build trust within a team?
A lack of trust could be detrimental to the productivity and efficiency of any workplace, which is why managers need to focus on building trust within a team. It is a two-way street where both managers and employees need to mutually put in the effort to build trust in a team.
How do you build trust in your team?
Communicating with your team is another beneficial way to build trust. If you speak with your employees clearly, then you can reduce the number of misunderstandings that your team has. It’s also important to communicate with the employees often. For example, if you learn about an important change in a business plan, update your team.
