Podcast Episode 115 Transcript: The Top 3 Steps to Create Trust in the Workplace

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The Foundation of Trust in the Workplace

Introduction to the Worth Work System

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to this episode of the Stable Workplace Podcast. My name is Shane Jacob, your host, and I thank you for taking your time to be here with me today, talking about the Worth Work System and how we judge the work and protect the person, and how to implement that.

So here's a quick recap. You've listened to this podcast, you know a little bit about me and the system and how it operates. What it means is that here's the basic concept, if you're new: simply that we protect people's value. We do our best in the group, in this workplace, in this company, at this organization, to not make things personal.

What does that mean? That means that we don't, what people do, we do our best to have what people do not affect their value, their worth, what kind of a person to mean something about their identity based on something that they did. It's the complete separation of behavior versus worth or value, taking things personally.

And so we do our best to create a workplace where we separate the work from the worth. So we, we judge the work because it must be judged, but we try not to, we do our best not to judge people based on what they do, which is opposite of normal thinking, opposite of what we've, we've been taught, and off opposite of what we've been normalize conditioned to believe.

We've, we've all been conditioned to believe that what we do determines it means something about us. It means something about our value at the core. Okay.

And when people in a group, in a workplace, in a team, in an organization, when they feel safe from value judgment. In other words, they, they don't feel that they're gonna be judged, their identity, the kind of a person, their worth, or their, their value as a human being, is going to be judged based on what they do, it changes a lot.

Then we can, we have higher productivity. It's been proven through Project Aristotle, with Google's Project Aristotle and psychological safety, which according to me simply means what I just said, that that is that people trust that they are safe from value judgment in the group. Okay.

Psychological Safety and Value Judgment

Value judgment meaning you are this or you are that because you did this and you did that, like something is wrong with you because of what you did, rather than the idea that yes, you did something wrong, and that means you're a human being. Nothing's wrong with you. You just did what you did for whatever reason.

It doesn't matter whether you did it on purpose, whether it was a mistake, whether it was a lack of communication, it doesn't matter. It's something that needs to change. And if, no matter why it happened, none of those reasons have anything to do with the kind of a person you are. It doesn't mean anything about you personally. Okay, if this is making sense.

So we attempt to make this separation in the workplace. And the reason is we have higher productivity and happier people.

Implementing the Worth Work System

So talking today about how to implement, how to actually, how to actually pans out, how it works in the workplace. Okay. Because it's not, it's a little easier said than done. And sometimes it's not even that easy to say because it's such a foreign concept to most normal thinking.

So today I want to just talk about a couple of a couple of things in the implementation that make all the difference. Okay. Because this is going to be a new skill. It's going to take some work. It's going to take some practice for leaders to be able to implement, to be able to have the results.

So before I say more about the ideas that I'm going to share with you, a couple of my implementation ideas, I just want to say, I want to focus in on the bottom line again.

The Bottom Line: Judge the Work, Protect the Person

The bottom line again is, says that, when we devalue people because of how they behave, okay, that we have worse results. We have lower productivity, lower performance. We have more defensiveness. We have less accountability, less personal responsibility, less ownership, whatever you want to call that.

To me, it's all the same. Ownership, accountability, and personal responsibility to me are all the same, but you have less of that.

You also have less engagement. Engagement meaning people don't speak up. They don't contribute, they contribute less. They make less recommendations. They provide less ideas, less suggestions, so you have less in less innovation. You have less, less ideas because people don't wanna have their idea, they put their idea out there and have it scrutinized and say, “You're an idiot, that's a terrible idea.”

Not that you would say that, but if they feel that way because of their idea, then it's not worth it to them to bring it up, so they say nothing.

Or they run across a problem and they try to solve it and they make it worse. They don't go get help because they're afraid to look bad.

And so all this stuff that that is that causes, that costs companies time and money, a lot of it is wrapped up in how people perceive themselves and how they think they're being perceived by other people. It's about their own belief system about themselves.

So we're trying to help that by promoting the idea that we always respect and regard the person, the people that we work with, a hundred percent, regardless of what they do or don't do or how they do it and any of that.

We always protect the person and we only judge the work. And we must judge the work because that's why we're there. We're there to do better work, more efficiently, more for, you know, be more productive, more effective, more profitable in the bottom line.

So that everybody has a higher quality of life. That's why we're all together in this group.

So doing this, my bottom line in explaining that again is that the bottom line of the Worth Work System and its principle, judge the work, protect the person, is that we all get more of why we're there. We get a better result. We end up with a higher quality of life because the team functions better together. Okay.

We're more cooperative, more collaborative, more agreeable. We have a better attitude. We trust, the trust is, we trust each other more in this group because we feel protected from value judgment.

Practical Leadership Implementation

So implementation. Here's a couple of keys on implementation. Like I said, it's not always easy. But it's doable and it's worth it.

So here's a couple of ideas.

Number one, we've talked about this before, and that is that we always have leaders preface quote-unquote feedback or correction or training or changes or questioning or evaluations or a lot of the interactions.

We just try to keep it top of mind by prefacing it with something like, “Just know this not about you. Just need to talk about what you're doing,” or “We need to talk about the work. Not about you.”

Or it could sound like, “Hey, I I got you,” or, you know, “Totally respect you. This is not about you.”

This just so we we keep it top of mind, and that helps us focus on the work and not the person, or devaluing the person or degrading them somehow, or making them feel bad about what they've done, because when they don't feel bad about what they've done, we it's easier to correct it and fix it and make progress and move on.

And it it helps us focus on that, and it helps them focus on that by prefacing comments with, “Hey, I got you. Not about you. Just wanted to say that. Just need to focus on the work. Just need to change what you're doing, not you. Don't want to change you.”

That's a great one. I like that one.

“Don't want to change you. Just need to change a little bit of what you're doing here.”

“Okay. Thanks, I might try that.”

Using Prefaces to Reduce Defensiveness

So we always we work on prefacing that to keep it top of mind for ourselves as the leaders. Anytime we give feedback or we talk about needing something different, okay, because the first thing that is gonna happen about, well, a hundred percent of the time, nearly, is that people are gonna get offensive, okay?

Because they're gonna you're gonna say, “Hey, what you're doing isn't working.” And they're gonna go, “Wat does this mean about me?” Okay, not consciously, but in the subconsciously in back of your mind. That's what happens.

And when people get defensive, then we don't make progress, we don't make the change, we just make excuses, and it just costs time and money. Defensiveness does. Defensive is expensive, is like what I said last week, I think, in the podcast.

So preface is one.

Private Corrections Instead of Public Scrutiny

Two is, two is to when there is any disciplinary, even if it's just a change. “Hey, I noticed this, I need you to do it different, I need you to do this. Hey, this wasn't the way we do things. Hey, we used to do it this way, but now I need you to do it this way.”

Any corrections, feedback, I guess we can call it feedback. Feedback to me just sounds like a weak.

Say what you mean. What you're doing isn't working. So I'm gonna call that a correction. Hey, I need to correct what you're doing. We need to change what you change orders, evaluations. That makes more sense than feedback. I don't know. That's a personal thing with me. If feedback works for you, we use it.

But whatever it is that we one, the next thing that we do is we keep people, we don't do it in a group. Okay. We don't correct people amongst their peers, amongst their, you know, where possible. So you just be appropriate about this.

Sometimes you need a leader or an HR or this or that. But what we don't the goal here is not to scrutinize the person in front of the group because then all they can think of is what is everybody thinking about me. Okay.

Even if you preface it, if there's a group there, it makes it harder for people to accept the idea, even if you're doing the best you can as the leader, that this isn't about them. They're gonna think it's about them if you if you have it, if you talk to them in a group setting with their co-workers, even sometimes with their manager is appropriate.

I'm talking about, here's the bottom line, okay? Be appropriate with who's there.

Because I've done this. Recently I had something and I didn't think it through and I just started talking to the guy and he was with a coworker, and the office manager just kind of showed up halfway in it, and I continued the conversation.

And it didn't work because I could see, and after talking to him later, trying to mend what I had created, I should have had him by himself, separated, where these other people weren't hearing what I needed him to correct, because all he could think about was, “What do they think about me? I'm getting in trouble.” And, you know, the focus, it changed the focus. Okay.

He couldn't stay focused on changing the work because he was too focused on what other what everybody else was thinking about what was happening.

That's a big one. Okay.

So yes, sometimes people need to be there, but if it can be a one on one. Sometimes you can, if it needs to be documented, it's like, well, how am I going to document this? But it's a one-on-one.

A lot of times you can record it, but then people get worried about that.

The bottom, really, it just needs to be have appropriate people there and not more people than you need. Okay, that comes down to that.

Leadership Attitude and Emotional Awareness

The third piece of the implementation that I wanted to talk about today is, and this may be the most important part, and that is how your attitude as leaders, how you approach people.

You know, we try to set an expectation that many expectations. We try to let people know that none of the leaders and managers and the owner of the company, and I'm the owner of the company, and when I teach this, that everyone is equal. Okay, it doesn't matter your title, how long you've been there.

Every human being is equal and we always respect and regard that person. We always protect the person. We only scrutinize and judge the work.

But you can say that and we set the expectation. But people won't believe it and they won't feel it unless your attitude and unless you're in check.

So the last part of the implementation, what I'm saying is is how you approach it. Meaning your attitude.

Managing Frustration Before Addressing Problems

What's your thought?

This is the hard one for me. And let me give you an example of what I mean if I'm not being clear right now.

As a leader, or the manager or somebody responsible, you see something that happened. Okay. And immediately now the stakes are high.

Maybe you feel like you're gonna be in have a problem with people above you, your higher ups. Maybe you think you're gonna have a financial problem. Maybe you just see something that is so frustrating because you've felt like you've communicated it clearly and you've repeatedly been through the same problem and you're just like fr super frustrated, angry, mad.

Like, how could this be? What are you thinking? What's the matter with you?

You have to listen for those thoughts and recognize your attitude because those kind of thoughts never make it better.

And I'm not talking about just having a peaceful resolution here. I'm talking about the long-term results of what's happening inside your organism, organization, inside your team. It just doesn't damn work.

And and so what I recommend and what I work on doing as much as possible is when I first of all to be aware of myself. Okay. How am I how am I feeling about this whole thing? Am I keeping this in perspective? Or am I operating off emotions that I don't want to be?

Okay, or that I am gonna regret, okay, because I'm angry, that I'm so frustrated.

Am I gonna be using some sarcasm? Am I gonna be making this person feel bad?

Because here's the thing. You can say that we're only talking about the work, but if you don't feel it and believe it in your heart and soul in that moment, whoever you're talking about, whoever you're talking to, they're gonna know. Okay. They're gonna know.

It's gonna come out because the what's inside of us comes out. You're not gonna be able to hide it. It ain't happening.

So those things are gonna happen. Okay.

And I I would just say that if you expect that it's not gonna happen, that that's not a reasonable expectation.

If you're a leader, disappointment and frustration, if that doesn't cross your path, I don't know where in the hell you're operating or who you're dealing with, because occasionally it's gonna happen and sometimes it's gonna happen a lot.

Keeping Perspective for Better Results

And so being aware of yourself and saying, “Okay, I need to stop, pause, focus, breathe,” whatever it takes for you to take the time.

Usually it's just for me, it's an amount of time. Think this through, have the awareness of what's happening with me so that when I go and I address the situation, when I talk to the person about the problem, about the the whatever the thing is that needs to change, that I have that I am really, I'm not just saying, hey, this is not about you.

Because if I have in the back of my mind, what's the matter with you? You didn't get this. I don't know why you do this, something's wrong with you.

If this anger and those kind of thoughts are rolling around in the back of your mind and you haven't addressed them in your own mind, it's gonna come out and you're not gonna have a good result.

And the big difference is when I can put this back into perspective, when I recognize, okay, I'm angry, I'm making this about the person. Okay, this is exactly what we don't want to have happen.

And it's like a side benefit that who you're gonna talk to is gonna feel better.

But really the bottom line is is what we're trying to do here is we're, we're trying to operate a comp a better company and have better results.

And the way that you do that, a side a benefit, a side benefit, you know, collateral call it, we'll call it, is that who you're going to talk to is not going to have the feelings hurt, but you're going to have a better result.

So think it through, recognize it, and then get your perspective.

How do I want this to go?

How do I want this person to feel at the end of this conversation?

Because if you think that you want them to feel as disgusted and angry and frustrated as you, and that's gonna be a good idea, you want them to feel a little bit shameful for what they've done, you want them to feel a little bit bad because they should feel bad for hell's sakes for what they did, I'm here to tell you it's gonna backfire on you, and it's been back.

If you think that way, it's been backfiring on you.

Building Trust Through Consistent Leadership

And I know this because I've done it. I've done it so much for so long, and it doesn't work. Okay.

It used to be my normal mode of operation. And sometimes I don't get it done perfectly that way that I want to, but most of the time now I recognize, I stop, I pause, I reprioritize, and I and I go to that person and I look at them the best I can with, with equal, equal regard as I would to me or any other person.

I look at them the same on an equal playing ground with the same value in perfect high regard. And I only talk about, regardless of why it happened, I only judge the work and what we can do to change what has happened.

And I try to let them know. I, I, I go through the steps, you know, that I, I preface it what it's not about them. And then we just focus in on the work.

And I, I let them know that I, I don't want it to be about them and I don't want them to feel bad.

And when that happens and the, the trust rises over time, and it doesn't take very long if you're consistent, things change and they change for the better, and you will get the result. I guarantee it, it works.

Why Anger and Frustration Hurt Results

What doesn't work is, and I've tried this too, here's how I know, is saying that this is how you, this is what you mean, but when you operate it, you're angry. Okay.

Because they feel that that frustration and that anger and that angst and what's inside of you is directed at them, at them personally, not just at what they did and we need to change this, but at the individual person.

And when that happens, that's when your results start getting worse.

So if you want better reasons, if you're here's the here's the way I look at it. I've got a problem, and if I want it to get worse, I can let them see some of my frustration and my anger and let some of that go, you know, show towards them and let them feel, you know, some of my anger, because they will, okay.

And that's, and the result is gonna be a hundred percent of the time, it's gonna get worse. Okay.

Your situation is not gonna get solved because when they feel bad, it does not solve it. It never solves the problem. Okay. It's gonna make it worse.

So if you want it worse, that's the way to go about it.

People trying to shame people and have feel bad, and because you do, because you think they deserve it and thinking that's gonna be a good solution, it, it works zero percent of the time.

The Better Approach to Workplace Corrections

What does work is that if you stop, recognize, prioritize, and go to those people straight up inside your heart and your soul, you've taken the time and you can get to where it doesn't take you all that long.

It doesn't take very long, it doesn't have to be a big, long process to where you can you well, I'm working on it shorter and shorter and shorter, right?

Maybe in the beginning it's gonna take a few minutes or a half hour, an hour, or a half a day. I don't know how long it's gonna take, but however long it takes to get the to get yourself in the mode that you can show up with honest inside your heart and soul that you respect and regard that human being the same as you do yourself or any other person and only focus on the work.

And they know that and they feel it and they believe it and the trust rises, those results, the bad result is going to happen less, and you're gonna start to have the results that you're looking for, and you're gonna end up with less frustration.

So those are my three implementation ideas today.

The Foundation of Workplace Trust

The Worth Work System is the fundamental, whenever we judge the work and protect the person, is the fundamental concept that creates trust in the workplace.

And I don't just mean like we know that the word trust is important, but a lot of times we don't say, well, specifically who trusts who, and who trusts who to do what are you talking about?

And in the workplace, I'm talking about everybody in the group trust each other.

Everyone in the group, in the team, in the department, in the company, in the entire organization, whatever it is, that everyone in the group that we're talking about trusts each.

Trusts that they will be safe from value judgment.

That means that we don't judge people. We don't think that they're more or less because of what they do, regardless of what they do.

Now, that's a big concept, and that is the foundational concept of that is the Worth Work System, but it's the foundational concept of what works in human relations.

Creating a Culture of Psychological Safety

And that is why that as you implement this system, okay, and as people feel the trust that we're working on providing the environment to be had, because you can't put thoughts and feelings into other people.

You can only provide the, you know, you can only do what you can do. You can relate, you can show up in the world and you can relate to them and interact with the world the best that you do.

But when you do that, you provide the opportunity, the space, you give the space and you create the way that we do things here.

And the way that you come out and relate with people gives them the chance to increase that trust.

And then that's when you have an increase of things you want start going better and your productivity shoots up and all the good things that that you're looking for and those that the number of times that you need to regulate yourself and step back and make sure that you're you know the frustration just goes down because you there's just not so much of it.

This steps works. It's not something that I invented. It's just the way that I explain how it works.

Final Thoughts on Leadership and Human Value

And I know because of the s of doing it wrong for so many for so long in so many different ways and knowing what actually works.

And there's lots of things that work, but this what I'm talking about is the actual foundation.

I mean, if you drill down to to the very bottom of what's inside of people's hearts and minds in their soul, this is what people need to be their best.

And it's what you, my friend, need to be the best leader you can be.

Appreciate you being here with me today.

Remember, my friends, your value is non-negotiable.

Stay with me.

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The Foundation of Trust in the Workplace

How do you build trust in the workplace? In this episode, Shane Jacob explains how the Worth Work System helps leaders create trust by separating a person's value from their performance. Business owners, executives, HR leaders, and operations leaders will learn three practical ways to implement Worth Work, improve communication, reduce people problems, and create a workplace where employees feel respected while still being held accountable for results.