Shannon Waller's Team Success

The Power Of Openness: How Transparency Drives Team Success

Oct 3, 2024

Discover the essential role of transparency in authentic leadership. Leaders are encouraged to be open and honest, which fosters trust among team members. When teams feel psychologically safe, they are more likely to voice their ideas and take risks. Practical strategies include sharing insights from meetings and explaining decision-making processes. Acknowledging limitations and asking for help further boosts collaboration, making everyone feel valued. Ultimately, transparency can drive innovation and enhance overall team success.

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Quick takeaways

Transparency is essential for building trust within a team, as it encourages open communication and helps leaders connect authentically with their members.

Creating psychological safety allows team members to take risks and share innovative ideas, leading to higher engagement and improved team performance.

Deep dives

The Importance of Transparency in Leadership

Transparency is crucial for building trust within a team, as it fosters open communication and helps leaders maintain strong relationships with their members. Leaders must navigate the challenge of what to share, especially if they are typically more private individuals. Failure to be transparent can lead to distrust, as team members might assume there is a hidden agenda if they feel excluded from discussions. Trust is more important than mere likability; it underpins respect and collaboration, which are essential for effective leadership.

Building Trust Through Transparency in Leadership

24min

Are you an authentic leader? Do you find it easy or hard to be transparent with your team? In this episode, Shannon Waller discusses the power of authenticity and transparency in leadership. She shares practical strategies to build trust, engage your team, and create psychological safety so that everyone feels safe to express their ideas and take risks. If your team doesn’t seem to take risks, this will be an eye-opening episode to listen to.

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Show Notes:

It’s more important for your team to trust you than to simply like you.
Being transparent means being open, honest, and authentic without hidden agendas.
Our brains are wired to perceive threats more than safety.
Without trust, teams become defensive and stagnant.
When team members feel safe to take risks and voice their ideas, this leads to greater innovation and success.
Strategies For Transparency:
- Share insights from leadership meetings openly with your team.
- Provide more information rather than less to avoid misunderstandings: use The Impact Filter^™ tool to share your thinking and intentions.
- Explain the reasoning behind decisions and include awareness of the emotional impact on the team.
- Use “I” statements to express your feelings without blaming others.
- Acknowledge your limitations and ask for help when needed.
- Ask open-ended questions without leading toward a specific answer. Be willing to listen genuinely.
- Close the loop on discussions by sharing outcomes and reasoning behind decisions.
- Regularly check in on how team members feel about decisions.
Stay straightforward and avoid manipulative tactics; focus on solutions instead of creating unnecessary drama.
Understand your own triggers and emotional responses to better manage interactions with your team.
Regularly assess where you can improve transparency in your leadership approach:
- Where have you felt like it was appropriate to be open and honest?
- Where do you feel held back?
- Where do you take things personally?