Don’t Let Your Title Binder Your Team’s Trust

Brief

People don’t share themselves or the full truth when they’re cognizant of someone’s title, writes Scott Cochrane. You can overcome this by getting to know your team personally and being “clear at the outset that the environment is safe for candor,” he writes.

Insight

If you rely on your title to establish your influence, you can be in for big trouble in your leadership. Because your title can actually work against your efforts to be an authentic leader.The reality is, often having an impressive title can diminish your ability to lead effectively.

Here are 3 occasions when you can run smack into the middle of the trouble with titles…

1. When you want to know what’s really going on
“So team…how’s everything going in this department?”

“Top drawer, boss! Couldn’t be better!”

Your impressive sounding title can be your greatest hindrance when you really want to know what’s happening in your organization. Because you might want to have everyone see you as just “Sue” or “Bob”, but very often, your title will completely overshadow the informality of your name.

2. When you genuinely want honest feedback
“Hey team, what do you think of my new idea?”