What will make you successful at creating an independent, proactive team?

Based on hundreds of hours of observation, I have come up with three components.

I call them the Trust Triangle.

The first is trust in your own ability (self-confidence), the second is trust in your team and the third is trust in your organization.

In this episode we discuss why trust in your organization may prevent you from leading differently.

That is, if you believe your organization does not give you permission...

Last week we discussed how it is essential to trust ourselves (self-confidence) before we can trust others.

This week as part of the Trust Triangle I am introducing the importance of trusting your team.

If you don't trust your team, how can you empower them?

You won't.

So how do you know if you trust your team?

There are a few ways to know - and they may not be what you think.

They may be things you think are legitimate reasons to not delegate or assign responsibility.

In this episode I...

Empower your team to do better work.

Sounds great, right?

So why don't more humanitarian and development leaders do it?

It has to do with our trust levels.

In order to lead in an empowering way and create a more inclusive environment, we need three essential components.

It's what I call the Trust Triangle.

We need to trust in ourselves (self-confidence), trust in our team and trust in our organization.

Without one of these, we will not be able to fully empower others.

In this episode I...

Successful leaders have strong relationships with their teams.

When your team feels you value them and trust them, they will want to help you succeed.

When they win, you win.

So how can you build a strong relationship?

It starts with strong communication.

Learn more in this week's episode on how certain communication skills (especially listening) can make the difference between building connection or fueling disconnection.

Today's guest has really done it.

He has taken what he learned about coaching and created a culture within his organization that has resulted in a more proactive team.  This in turn has allowed him to grow his organization and focus on the important.

In short, Salif Kanoute, President of DECLIC NGO in Senegal, has gotten out of his own way.

This is not easy as a leader - we often think our teams need us too much for us to step back.

But Salif is a great example of what can happen when a...