Your ability to tell the truth is essential for building trust. Trust and honesty go together.
And, yet…
Do you fear what will happen if you honestly share your thoughts and feelings at work? Might you fall back on saying what you think others want you to say rather than what you truly perceive?
People need to talk openly about issues. It’s a core, human need. We all want straightforward communication. No lying. No exaggerating. No stretching or omitting or spinning the truth.
There different kinds of truth. There is the truth about the status of a project. The status of a decision. The status of change. The truth about a position. A client. A goal.
And then there are more personal truths the truth about your confidences and vulnerabilities.
Being aware of the different forms of truths and developing your ability to share each of them deepens your trustworthiness.
Being ill equipped to tell the truth erodes your trustworthiness.
Yet, sometimes telling the truth can be difficult. You may be nervous others will get frustrated with you or won’t like what you have to say. You may worry they’ll blame, judge, or criticize you. That you’ll lose a relationship.
So, you may slip into sharing comfortable variations of partial versions of the truth.
To save yourself from compromising your trustworthiness, shift focus. Instead of telling the truth, share your truth. The truth based on your perception. Honor your lived experience while making room for others’interpretation of events.
Trust is built when you’re honest about your viewpoint while also inviting others to deepen or shift your understanding. In this way, you genuinely connect with other people.
Trust Tip:
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Tune in to your truth. What do you actually believe and feel about a given situation? Give yourself permission to gain clarity.
- Open the door to dialogue and genuine human connection.
- Share your truth. Own it.