Friday, October 12, 2012

Covey’s Speed of Trust 9: 4th Core of Credibility—Results

Covey tree metaphorThis continues our series reviewing Stephen M. R. Covey’s book The Speed of Trust. I highly recommend you buy the book, study it, and implement what you read.

Stephen M. R. Covey shares “Results matter! They matter to your credibility. They matter to your ability to establish and maintain trust with others. In the words of Jack Welch, having results is like having ‘performance chits’ on the table. They give you clout. They classify you as a performer. Without the results, you simply don’t have that same kind of clout.”

“Bottom line, without results, you don’t have credibility.”

Results—Past, Present, and Future

Covey continues “I have worked briefly on Wall Street and been an executive in a public company, and it’s clear to me that there are three key indicators by which people evaluate results.

  • Past performance—your track record, your reputation, the things you’ve done, and the results you’ve already achieved.
  • Current performance—how you are performing today
  • Anticipated performance—how people think you will perform in the future

Ask What and How

He outlines “In considering results, you always need to ask two critical questions:

  • What results am I getting?
  • How am I getting those results?

“Most people only ask the what. They have no idea that the answer to the how may be doing them in…This is why I define leadership as getting results in a way that inspires trust.  I am convinced that with regards to results, the how matters every bit as much as the what.”

Improve Your Results

How can you improve results? I believe the three accelerators below are most effective:

  • Take responsibility for results: “A results focus is a way of thinking. It’s a different mentality than an activities focus”
  • Expect to win: “We tend to get what we expect—both from ourselves and from others. When we expect more, we tend to get more; when we expect less, we tend to get less”
  • Finish strong: Results are about finishing. You’re probably aware of the old adage, Beginners are many; finishers are few.

Monday we will begin studying the 2nd wave of trust—relationship trust

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