Building Relational Trust

Over the past several years, I have had the privilege of facilitating professional learning sessions with a wide variety of mentors in school boards across Ontario.

At each session participants shared how they are building (and rebuilding) trust. Below are their thoughts:

Building Inclusion
  • Structuring goal setting conversations to avoid misalignment of expectations
  • Modelling a genuine interest in learning together
  • Demonstrating appreciation of and belief in your colleagues
  • Providing an oasis of calm
  • Celebrating successes together
Modelling Mutual Respect
  • Respecting confidential nature of relationship
  • Remaining non-judgemental
  • Walking in the person's shoes
  • Avoiding the "you shoulds"
  • Demonstrating congruence between words and actions
  • Being receptive to feedback yourself
Sharing "Real World" Challenges
  • Sharing own challenges to level the playing field
  • Acknowledging the messiness of learning
  • Being vulnerable as this opens the door to deeper sharing
  • Sharing challenges but also the quiet victories that occur each day
Listening, Listening, Listening
  • Being available to listen (both mentally and in real time)
  • Being authentically present
  • Recognizing the power of silence and the importance of simply listening
  • Listening to learn as opposed to listening to speak
  • Listening with uncertainty