A few years back, I was consulting in a practice and was speaking to the team about the importance of monitoring and reporting progress as we moved forward with some new initiatives. Suddenly, the doctor abruptly called a break and asked to speak to me privately. He told me that he wanted the coaching and was anxious to see if the changes would make a difference but that he had no intentions of sharing his practice numbers with his team. When I quizzed him about "why?", he replied that he did not trust them and feared they would erroneously think he was rich and greedy as well as potentially leak the information to his competition.

Unfortunately I knew that when fear and suspicion rule the workplace and the team operates in the dark and with a lack of trust... change is much harder and less likely.

 This week for Music Monday (always the first Monday of every month where I share a song from my playlists) I've chosen "Everything is Sound" by Jason Mraz. It's not only a perfect fit for the idea of communication and trust but also for the continuation of our study of Kip Tindell's seven "Foundation Principles" by which he leads his team at The Container Store.

 Kip Tindell has differentiated his business with a "whole brain" approach to information exchange and execution. He worries less about information falling into the wrong hands and more about whether all employees feel empowered, clear, valued, trusted, and inspired with the information they need to do their jobs well and understand their role in the big picture. Instead of leading and managing on a "need to know only" basis, they operate with the question, "Who will benefit by having this information?" They believe the advantages of transparent, open, and honest communication far outweigh any "possible" downside.

 I find in large part the world gives me back not only what I give to it but also what I fully expect from it. I believe most people are good, honest, hard-working, caring and trustworthy ... and I'm rarely wrong. I had several examples this week of people doing the right thing even when they didn't have to and no one was looking.

 This week, expect the good in others until they prove you wrong. Trust your team with the information that will empower them and show that you value them and need their support. And remember, Communication IS Leadership.

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