Find the full transcript at yourfuturerealized.com/11.
Everyone doubts themselves from time to time. But for some, it takes the form of a constant uphill battle.
When you lead cross-functional operations, your attention is always pulled in different directions. It’s easy to get over-stimulated and take the stress out on yourself.
A Director of People Operations recently said to me,
“I internalize a lot of what goes wrong. I tend to think that when things are going wrong it’s because there’s something wrong with me.”
Does that hit close to home?
It’s common for leaders to struggle with this, especially in high-pressure roles like that of an operations executive. You bear a lot of the weight of responsibility for the success of the org and the people in it.
So, in this episode, I’ll talk about what the big deal is about self-trust. And I’ll share a practice you can use to trust yourself more.
Episode 11 – The Secret Ops Execs Use to Trust Themselves More
Everyone doubts themselves from time to time. But for some, it takes the form of a constant uphill battle.
When you lead cross-functional operations, your attention is always pulled in different directions. It’s easy to get over-stimulated and take the stress out on yourself.
A Director of People Operations recently said to me,
“I internalize a lot of what goes wrong. I tend to think that when things are going wrong it’s because there’s something wrong with me.”
Does that hit close to home?
It’s common for leaders to struggle with this, especially in high-pressure roles like that of an operations executive. You bear a lot of the weight of responsibility for the success of the org and the people in it.
So, in this episode, I’ll talk about what the big deal is about self-trust. And I’ll share the practice you can use to lighten your mental load.
Find the full transcript at yourfuturerealized.com/11.
Hey Ops Execs!
Self-Trust Corresponds with Successful Leadership
Self-trust is vital in your experience as a leader. It allows you to make better decisions and communicate them more clearly.
And how can you manage anyone else until you learn to manage what goes on in your own head?
Over recent years, there’s been a growing interest in the role self-trust plays for leaders. A 2018 University of Nebraska-Lincoln study explored self-trust and leadership effectiveness.
In it, they surveyed mid-level managers across various industries. They measured their levels of self-trust, leadership effectiveness, and job satisfaction.
The results probably won’t surprise you. There is a positive correlation between self-trust and leadership effectiveness. Those who reported higher levels of self-trust were seen as more effective leaders by their subordinates.
Why Trusting Yourself Elevates Your Performance
Self-trust is a symbiotic relationship between your actions and beliefs. When you trust yourself, you’re more likely to make choices that align with your values. This then reinforces your trust in yourself. And the positive feedback loop keeps growing positive results.
The more you trust yourself, the faster you make decisions without second guessing yourself or needing external validation.
Trusting yourself also requires you be self-aware and honest with yourself. Acknowledging your real limitations and mistakes helps you learn from them. This all feeds your trust in your own compass.
The more you can manage to trust yourself, the more you get that warm, happy feeling you get when you’re in control.
Now here’s where it shifts from an internal-only process to affecting your stakeholders: When you trust yourself, your team knows it. They can sense it. And when that happens, they trust you more easily and even take you more seriously. And that feeds your resilience and self-assurance.
Shift Your Operations: Moving from Self-Doubt to Self-Trust
So, let’s cut to it:
What does it take to get this magical self-trust loop started?
Building trust in yourself is like building any good habit. It requires awareness, intention, and discipline.
When you notice that you’re stuck in the ‘what’s wrong with me’ churn. Pause yourself, mentally and emotionally. If you can, physically get outside or move to a different space.
And just notice how those thoughts you’re having about that corrode your trust in yourself.
As an experiment, try this:
Imagine you’re hearing your thoughts on the radio. Can you make them a little louder? How about a little quieter? See? You are separate from them.
Now imagine you’re able to not only hear these thoughts, but you can see them, too.
I like to imagine the thoughts are goldfish in a pond. The thoughts are not the pond, they’re just swimming through it.
Once they’re over there paddling around the pond, you have the space to get real with yourself. Ask yourself:
- What are my assumptions about this situation? For example, maybe it’s something like “I must be doing a terrible job,” or “If things don’t go right now, they’ll never trust me.”
- What evidence supports my assumption?
- What evidence contradicts my assumption?
- How realistic are the expectations I’m setting for myself?
- How can I reframe my thoughts to be more constructive? What would I say to someone else who was experiencing the same thing?
By proactively managing your thoughts you’ll start to trust your own authority more and be a better leader.
To get more insight into how you’re wired, I recommend checking out the Enneagram. I give a short taste of the system in episode 7: How Operations Execs Can Gain an Edge in Communications. You can find it at yourfuturerealized.com/7.
You can’t stop the chaos, but you can change the game.