1.
ENABLE OTHERS: BUILDING TRUST,
CREDIBILITY & EMPOWERMENT
Leaders provide the environment that empowers
others, by helping people learn & grow.
Facilitator: Elizabeth A. Curry, PhD
elizabethcurry@cox.net 352-240-6286
1

2.
THE LEADERSHIP CHALLENGE
FIVE PRACTICES & TEN COMMITMENTS
 MODEL THE WAY
1. Find your voice by clarifying your personal values.
2. Set the example by aligning your actions with shared values.
 INSPIRE A SHARED VISION
3. Envision the future by imagining exciting and ennobling possibilities.
4. Enlist others in a common vision by appealing to shared aspirations.
CHALLENGE THE PROCESS
5. Search for opportunities by seeking innovative ways to change, grow
and improve.
6. Experiment and take risks by constantly generating small wins and learning
from mistakes.
ENABLE OTHERS TO ACT
7. Foster collaboration by promoting cooperative goals & building trust.
8. Strengthen others by sharing power and discretion.
ENCOURAGE THE HEART
9. Recognize contributions by showing appreciation for individual excellence.
10. Celebrate values & victories by creating a spirit of community.
Source: The Leadership Challenge by James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner, 2002.

3.
Trust &
Collaboration
Trust is the most significant predictor of individuals’ satisfaction with their organizations…
Trusting leaders nurture openness, involvement, personal satisfaction, and high levels of
commitment to excellence. (p.247)
It’s a reciprocal process. By demonstrating an openness to influence, leaders contribute to building the
trust that enables constituents to be more open to their influence.
Trust begets trust. ( p.247)
In enabling others to act, leaders have to skillfully balance creating a climate of teamwork and
trust while holding each person accountable for his or her actions. (p.285)
Leaders accept and act on the paradox of power: we become most powerful when we give our own
power away. (p.284)
Collaboration is a social imperative. Without it we can’t get extraordinary things done in
organizations. (p.242)
Collaboration is the critical competency for achieving and sustaining performance – especially in the
Internet Age. (p. 242)
At the heart of collaboration is trust. It’s the central issue in human relationships within and outside
organizations. Without trust you cannot lead. (p. 244)
Knowing that trust is key, exemplary leaders make sure that they consider alternative
viewpoints, and they make use of other’s expertise and abilities. (p. 247)
Sensitivity to people’s needs and interests is a key ingredient in building trust…. People listen more
attentively to those who listen to them. (p. 240)
The new currency of the Internet Age isn’t simply intellectual capital; it is social capital – the
collective value of the people we know and what we’ll do for each other. (p. 280)
Source: The Leadership Challenge by James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner

4.
WHO DO YOU TRUST? WHY?
PEOPLE – PERSONAL EXPERIENCE
Make a list of people you trust:
DEFINE TRUST
Look at the list of people you trust and think about why you trust them. What does trust mean? How
would you define trust? How do you develop trust?

5.
MYTHS ABOUT TRUST
Source: The Speed of Trust: The One Thing That Changes Everything
by Stephen M. R. Covey with Rebecca R. Merrill, Free Press, 2006.
Trust is soft.
• Trust is hard, real & quantifiable, it is measurable affects both speed & cost –
productivity.
Trust is slow.
• Nothing is as fast as the speed of trust.
Trust is built solely on integrity.
• Trust is a function of character (including integrity) and competence.
You either have trust or you don’t.
• Trust can be both created & destroyed.
Once trust is lost it can not be restored.
• Though difficult, in most cases lost trust can be restored.
You can’t teach trust.
• Trust can be effectively taught and learned, and it can become a quot;leverageablequot;,
strategic advantage.
Trusting people is too risky.
• Not trusting people is a greater risk.
Trust is established one person at a time.
• Establishing trust with the one, establishes trust with the many.

6.
LEVELS OF TRUST & OUTCOMES
Source: The Speed of Trust: The One Thing That Changes Everything
by Stephen M. R. Covey with Rebecca R. Merrill, Free Press, 2006.
TRUST = SPEED COST TRUST = SPEED COST
Trust makes a difference in productivity, efficiency, staff effectiveness,
competencies & results.
VERY LOW TRUST
Unhealthy working environment
Mistakes remembered, used as weapons
Unhappy employees & stakeholders/customers
Guarded communication
Intense political atmosphere with clear divisions, camps, parties etc.
Excessive time wasted defending positions & decisions & real issues do not surface
Painful micromanagement & bureaucracy
LOW TRUST
Common “CYA” behavior Doubting others’ reliability, commitment, abilities
Gathering evidence of others weaknesses or mistakes
Hidden agendas, self interest Militant stakeholders
Political camps with allies Dissatisfied employees
Bureaucracy and redundant systems Structures not working
Guarded (often grudging) dispersing information – “They should just know how…”
MODERATE TRUST
Healthy workplace Mutual tolerance & respect
Polite, cordial communication Good communication
Aligned systems & structures Limited office politics or camps
Focus on working together smoothly & efficiently
HIGH TRUST
The focus is on work, with cooperative, close, vibrant relationships
Mistakes seen as learning and focus is on each other’s strengths
Effective collaboration & execution Positive partnering
Uplifting, positive communication Positive energy & positive people
Helpful systems and structures Work as whole, not in camps
Strong creativity and innovation Confident, engaged employees
Work is based on sense of purpose

7.
BUILDING &
KEEPING TRUST
Source: The Speed of Trust: The One Thing That Changes Everything
by Stephen M. R. Covey with Rebecca R. Merrill, Free Press, 2006.
Behavior # 1 Talk Straight.
Behavior # 2 Demonstrate Respect & Genuine Caring.
Behavior # 3 Create Transparency – open, authentic & truthful.
Behavior # 4 Right Wrongs – Acknowledge & Apologize.
Behavior # 5 Show Loyalty – Acknowledge contributions.
Behavior # 6 Deliver Results – Don’t over promise.
Behavior # 7 Get Better – Act on feedback.
Behavior # 8 Confront Reality directly, courageously.
Behavior # 9 Clarify Expectations – Renegotiate if necessary.
Behavior # 10 Practice Accountability– Don’t blame others.
Behavior # 11 Listen First – Try to understand, don’t assume.
Behavior # 12 Keep Commitments – Make commitments public.
Behavior # 13 Extend Trust appropriately, even if it is a risk.

8.
FOSTER TRUST BY PROMOTING
COOPERATIVE GOALS
• Conduct a collaboration audit.
• Be the first to trust.
• Ask questions, listen, take advice.
• Always say we.
• Create jigsaw groups.
• Focus on gains, not losses.
• Make a list of alternative currencies.
• Take a lot of human moments.
• Create places and opportunities for informal interactions.
Source: The Leadership Challenge
By Kouzes & Posner

9.
Empowerment is …
creating an environment that encourages & allows people to grow and develop
by using their knowledge, motivation & power.
1. What empowers YOU? What helps you learn, grow, try new
things, feel energized and inspired?
2. Flip Side: What makes YOU feel demoralized, not empowered?
What makes you feel like you have no control over your work, no stake
in success?

10.
VIP EMPOWERMENT
Empowerment is creating an environment that encourages & allows people
to grow and develop by using their knowledge, motivation & power.
Motivate people by treating them like Very Important People!
Validation Information Participation
1. VALIDATION: CREATE AUTONOMY & CLEAR
BOUNDARIES
 Help people understand and feel comfortable with accountability
 Determine where CONTROL is essential & where it is not
 Identify where INITIATIVE is expected
 Encourage AUTONOMY in safe environment
 Actively communicate & clarify vision, roles, values
2. INFORMATION SHARING & LISTENING
 People without complete, accurate information cannot act responsibly
 Information is building block of trust
 Sharing information creates reciprocal loop of sharing more information
 Information sharing promotes effective teamwork not hierarchy and control from top.
3. PARTICIPATION: CREATE SELF DIRECTED TEAMS
 Empowering leaders teach people to be LESS dependent on the leader.
 Team skills need to be taught and practiced
 Build primarily on individuals’ intrinsic motivation
 Match roles & assignments to talents, Give credit & specific feedback
Sources: 3 Keys To Empowerment by Ken Blanchard, John P. Carlos & Alan Randolph
Empowerment Takes More Than a Minute by Ken Blanchard, John P. Carlos & Alan Randolph

11.
DO THINGS
AND REPORT
REGULARLY.
DO SOMETHING
AND REPORT
IMMEDIATELY.
MAKE SUGGESTIONS
ABOUT WHAT YOU THINK
NEEDS TO BE DONE.
ASK PERMISSION
BEFORE YOU DO SOMETHING.
ASK, “WHAT SHOULD I DO?”
TAKING THE STEPS
TO DEVELOP HIGH LEVEL INITIATIVE

12.
LEADING BY
LISTENING
IS GOOD BUSINESS
In
Business…
Effective listening lays the foundation for clear understanding.
Clear understanding allows appropriate response.
An appropriate response facilitates high quality communication.
High quality communication promotes organizational
cooperation.
Organizational cooperation improves employee morale.
High morale increases job commitment.
Job commitment leads to peak productivity.
Listening is Good Business.
FROM: The Business of Listening: A Practical Guide to Effective Listening
(Revised edition) by Diane Bone, “A Fifty-Minute Series Book, Crisp
Publications, Inc.

13.
We “listen” to 25% of what we hear.
We distort, filter, misinterpret,
misunderstand, forget, etc. 75% of what
we hear.
50 % of a worker’s time is
spent in communicating
85 % of business success is dependent
on effective communication
45 % of an individual’s time is
spent listening
70 % of workplace mistakes are
attributable to poor communication