Changing... the media's child-like test for trust
A quick note to keep in mind for this newsletter: Though the prompt for this newsletter is linked to recent political developments, my intention is not for this to be a political post. Rather, I want to look at how we respond to these sorts of events, especially how leaders changing past decisions can easily be seen as breaching trust.
The recent Labor Party government's about-face on the stage 3 taxes in Australia has resulted in a media focus on the inextricable links between leadership and trust.
You might think this is an issue of such magnitude that this conversation is irrelevant to you. If that's the case, you are wrong from a personal and broader system perspective.
This conversation is relevant to:
parents 'leading' their children
team leaders announcing an about-face from 'upstairs'
senior executives needing to make decisions and feeling the pressure of a rapidly changing world.
The media's obsession – is it reasonable?
The media is engaging in a game of 'gotcha' on one level. The interview narrative is along the lines of :
You said ….
Now you've changed your mind…
How can we trust you because you are showing a lack of integrity – you are not doing what you said you would do.
I get it. On one level our journalists are trying to 'hold politicians accountable'. But for what?
Does mature and effective leadership mean that you must hold to a decision despite changing circumstances?
Last year, I was contracted to author a report on the culture of a large organisation. I wrote a blog about it at the time.
Trust in the senior leadership seemed to have irretrievably broken down, and the organisational culture had 'plummeted'. (There is another newsletter just examining the assumptions underneath this statement!) They meant that employees had become disheartened and cynical about anything senior management and executives had to say.
I developed the 'Five Ways to Build Trust’© model based on my conversations and workshops with a sample of employees about how trust could be restored. (You can download a PDF of this here if you like.)
What's the way forward if you are caught in this bind, too? There may be an insight in the model for you.
But, as Nora Bateson might say, "The thing is not the thing!"
Trust it's not a thing. You can't touch it. It's not the result of a direct, singular cause-and-effect dynamic. It is an emergent quality of relationships. So, if you are trying to increase trust directly – you are aiming at the wrong 'thing'. Many 'things' contribute to trust.
Changing the singular focus
The focus of attention in the media (representing the public) in considering changing taxes and changing past decisions is 'integrity': doing what you say you will do.
In a changing world, is it reasonable to expect decisions made three years ago to be maintained without re-examination today?
It is close to insanity to hold to a past decision that doesn't make sense or move you closer to the shared desired future position (vision) if the circumstances have changed around you.
The media's obsession with their interview line holds back our maturity as a society as they impose an almost child-like standard of "but you said"! That needs changing… if we are to make progress on complex issues in a rapidly changing world.
A more mature and useful line may be:
What was the reasoning behind your decision three years ago?
How have things changed to make changing your mind seem sensible now?
Could you tell me what you're trying to accomplish?
What makes you think this new decision is a better option to accomplish that future state?
And on a more micro scale, what do you think about your leadership, changing decisions and trust? How can you best communicate changes in past choices with your team?