Leading with Transparency and Trust
*Writing this as an imaginary email to a ministry friend…
Hello Pastor & Ministry Leader,
I pray this email finds you well. I’m writing to you today to share my heart about a ministry leadership topic that I endeavor to grow in continually. I have worked at this for many of my 20 years in ministry. And the work continues. The work continues because I, like you, am a work in progress. Never to fully arrive on this side of eternity, and often experiencing setbacks in areas that I thought were well under control.
There are many leadership qualities that I believe are continually being refined in our lives as leaders. This month, let us consider the areas of Transparency and Trust. Consider the following pairs of statements: If you have one, you have both. If you don’t have one, you’ll never have the other. Which is the key? It seems to me that the presence or absence of Transparency will either pave or obstruct the way to Trust.
Among our many ministry relationships, when we lead with and model transparency, it seems that trust usually follows. Conversely, when we are guarded and private, trust seems to be much more difficult to cultivate. So how does one lead with transparency?
Pause: some readers may be thinking right now - isn’t this often personality driven? Aren’t some people just naturally more open, and others just naturally more private? Yes, of course. We all have different wirings and personality types. But irrespective of personality, the truthfulness of the statement at hand is not dependent on a personality type.
Put yourself on the other side of you. When a person comes across as being guarded and private, it often just naturally stirs suspicion in your own heart & mind because it feels like they may be hiding something. Or at the very least, concealing something that may be both helpful and relevant to the conversation at hand. This leads to a Leadership Axiom I’ve shared for years: When suspicion is present, Trust is absent.
Still on the other side of you, when you are having a conversation with another leader who is being open and transparent, you are far less likely to feel any suspicion of them. Of either their actions or their motives. Why? Because they are sharing the contents of their heart openly, allowing you to see within and decide to trust for yourself.
So before we briefly discuss transparency as a pathwath to trust, a comment about trust. For me, trust is in the same category as loyalty. If you have to ask for it, you don’t have it and you won’t get it. Both trust and loyalty are relational commodities that can’t be asked for! Here’s why - if you have to ask for it, that means you don’t feel you already have it. And if you don’t have it, there’s a reason for that! And just by asking, you aren’t going to motivate the other person to give it. In fact, your asking will likely provoke the opposite!
So how does one go about increasing their own level of transparency, particularly if their natural personality style isn’t wired that way? Here are a few thoughts.
First, it’s a choice. Are you convinced that this is true, and that it matters? In 1 Thess. 2:8, the Apostle Paul says to his readers “Because we loved you so much, we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well.” I believe Paul was a transparent leader, and as a result, his transparency inspired both trust and loyalty. If you are not naturally an open and transparent person, are you willing to concede that you should be?
Second, it’s an action. Once you decide to become a more transparent leader, start with small steps. In your next meeting, share something personal about your home life. Share a story about something silly you said or did. Talk more openly about your own insecurities and sense of shortcoming. Even consider sharing appropriately about where you have failed recently.
Third, it must be authentic. If you aren’t already a naturally open and transparent leader, the first steps must be small steps! And they must be authentic!! And DON’T tell people that you are working at being more transparent, just do it. And don’t expect immediate results or recognition. Like Paul, just start sharing your life more openly with the people you are called to lead, and see what the Holy Spirit will do with it to cultivate deeper atmospheres of trust and loyalty.
Finally, play the long game. Know that shifting the culture of your own leadership can be a long and arduous journey. But when you commit to becoming more vulnerable yourself, eventually (and that could be years) others will follow your example.
I love you, leader. I am praying that these words, perhaps even just one statement you’ve read, will be planted like a seed in your heart that will one day produce a harvest of blessing and greater leadership authenticity in your life.
God bless you!!