Trust and integrity. When dealing with others, we always have a choice: to be truthful and sincere, or to be deceitful. I believe that we should choose the former because any relationship, personal or professional is fundamentally based on trust. While we cannot stop others from choosing to lie, we can choose to act with integrity ourselves.
Have I lied before? Yes, I have. But as I grow and make new connections, I learnt over time that there is no meaning in forming one based on a lie. There can be no trust if I do not have integrity and my word will mean nothing. A relationship that lacks trust can only be toxic and unproductive. On the other hand, a relationship where both parties are able to trust each other has the potential to be beneficial for both since no effort has to be wasted on finding out whether the other person is lying or not.
Trust is also more than knowing that the other person is being honest. It is also having faith in other people’s abilities. This became most apparent to me when I was delegating tasks to my team members for group projects in school.
While discussing the direction the group’s presentation should take, my team gave valid suggestions. However, I let my distrust and ego get in the way. I forced my idea in and dismissed theirs because I did not have faith in them. In the end, my team was given a lacklustre score while teams that took a direction similar to those suggested by my teammates received excellent scores.
I thought I knew best and did not trust that my teammates could also have valid ideas. I apologised to my team for my inflexibility. From then on, I made sure to consider the perspectives of others thoroughly before rejecting it.
Everyone has their strengths and weaknesses. I need to trust and play to the strengths of my team while ensuring that their weaknesses are covered for instead of letting it define them. This manner of leadership, in my opinion, is more productive in the long run. The team will feel more appreciated and respected, and the work we do will be better for it. I am glad to have learnt this lesson in school where the stakes are lower and I aim to not repeat it in the future.