Five Ways that Team Members Build Trust with Each Other

people on the team know something about life outside work makes people "real." It's hard to trust a cipher but much easier to trust and be generous with someone who shares some of the same challenges and interests that you do.

3. Follow Through on Commitments or Give Early Notice When You Can't
In order for teams to function, team members need to believe that their coworkers are reliable. Without the confidence that others are reliable and will carry their share of the load, few will commit to a shared goal.

No reasonable person expects that every person can meet every commitment all the time. Sometimes a piece of code turns out to be more complex than anticipated, or we discover we didn't fully understand the task when we made our estimate. But when you wait until the moment the task was due to let people know it's going to be late, you appear unreliable. So let people know as soon as you know, and renegotiate.

4. Say No When You Mean No
Sometimes you just can't take on another task or do a favor that someone asks for. Most of us are programmed from an early age to please other people, so we're afraid of being labeled selfish or "not a team player" if we say no. But if you really can't do what's asked, it's more respectful to say no and let the other person have his need met elsewhere.

Saying yes without follow through leads others to doubt your word. If you can't say no, your yes won't mean anything.

5. Show What You Know and What You Don't Know
Be generous in sharing your knowledge (without inflicting help). But also be willing to hear other people's ideas, build on them, and help others shine. Admit when you don't know the answers. There's nothing worse than a know-it-all who is wrong.

It may seem paradoxical, but building competence trust-i.e., your coworkers' trust in your capabilities-sometimes means admitting that you don't have all the answers. Asking for help helps others see you as a real person, and people generally like to be helpful.

Most people enter a new situation with a basic level of trust. That level may be high or low, depending on their outlooks and life experiences. But from there, every interaction is an opportunity to increase or decrease trust. With the techniques I've listed above, you are now armed with several ways to build a strong foundation of trust for your team.