Leading in Skeptical Times

As you’re reading this, the US presidential election is nine days away.

It’s an extremely close race, and new data from pollsters is being released daily. And they show a nail-biter of a race.

But how accurate are polls? The past several election cycles have diminished faith in polling, as some polls were way off the mark. While it’s normal for polls to be off by several points, there’s a growing consensus we’ve entered a post-polling era. Voter behavior today defies prediction. And that’s because traditional voting blocs are changing. The demographic categories that once guided political forecasting have lost their explanatory power.

While some things remain constant in voters’ minds—jobs, cost of living, national security—there’s a new force driving voter behavior: a profound distrust of institutions.

In the age of social media people trust personal networks over institutions, influencers over traditional experts, and anecdotal stories and speculation over statistical evidence. The result? A wholesale rejection of traditional authority – from government and science to education and the news media.

This isn’t just a political problem. It’s a leadership problem.

Skepticism and mistrust towards people in power is nothing new. It’s partly due to what I call the “rank reflex.” We’re evolutionarily programmed to be wary of higher-ranking individuals who can influence our fate through rewards or punishments. But today, global distrust in leadership is higher than ever before.

What can leaders do to navigate mistrust? To build trust in the face of skepticism?

While there are many methods for building trust in normal times, building trust when there’s a crisis of confidences needs, above all, transparency, proximity, consistency, and purpose:

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Transparency. While some leaders strive to engender trust by being authentic, the asymmetrical power balance makes genuine authenticity questionable. Subordinates may feel forced to reciprocate, and the risks of being authentic are much greater for subordinates than for leaders.

Transparency is different. While authenticity asks “Am I being true to myself?” transparency asks “Am I serving our shared purpose effectively?” This moves from individual introspection to collective mission. Transparency acknowledges role-based relationships, and removes the pretense that hierarchy doesn’t exist. It’s more honest about power dynamics and organizational reality, which itself builds trust.

Transparency means sharing information, both good and bad. If you can’t talk about something, say so. It means giving regular updates on decisions, sharing the context behind changes and being open about challenges and constraints. It means explaining the “why” not just the “what.” It means accepting mistakes, and taking the blame when it’s yours. And it means being clear and direct about your expectations.

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Proximity. Trust increases through proximity. Physical presence triggers trust mechanisms. It’s easier to build relationships and come to greater understanding when you are face-to-face.

But the trappings of power get in the way of proximity. Layers of staff and gatekeepers get in the way. The physical distance of the C-Suite to the shop floor, the closed off areas and private dining rooms create a gap, a vacuum within which mistrust and misunderstanding flourishes.

Yet power distance is not inevitable, even within traditional hierarchies. Lindred Greer, Associate Professor of Management & Organizations at Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan, found in her research on hierarchy that it’s possible to decrease the gap that power creates, leading to healthier organizations.

To close that gap, be visible. Be available for questions, office hours, drop-ins. Remove or reduce the gatekeepers. Make it easier to connect with you. Make time for informal conversation. Eat in common areas. And importantly, be there at crisis moments. Don’t delegate the hard stuff, but sweat through it as others have to.

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Predictability. What’s the opposite of trust? Being scary and unpredictable. Trust happens when people can count on your underlying stability. If you are Dr. Jekyll when things are going well, but turn into a raging Mr. Hyde when it’s stressful and chaotic, you’re absolutely not trustworthy.

If your behavior is unpredictable, if people don’t know what to expect emotionally, it produces anxiety and creates an unsafe environment. People keep their distance out of self-preservation. They are afraid to be honest, to bring bad news, to ask questions. Relationship stability is the root of trust. And a predictable, self-regulated leader maintains that relationship stability no matter how stressful or chaotic things become.

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Purpose. In the United States, a quarter of all newspapers have closed and more than one-fifth of Americans live in “news deserts,” areas without any newspaper. The result is a loss of shared reality among community members. making it harder for people to come together to solve problems, since they can’t even agree on what the problems are.

In an organization, your team is your local community. It’s where you live. And if your team is not united by a common vision, by a shared understanding of purpose, and a shared set of values and behavioral norms, there cannot be trust. There’s no trust because there’s nothing to belong to, to believe in, to unify around. Instead, it’s the “Wild West,” everyone protecting their interests, and engaging in territorial behaviors.

Shared realities happen through creating a team charter, discussing purpose, responsibilities, norms, and roles. It comes through sharing context, making knowledge accessible, and creating shared vocabularies.

While humans are naturally wired for cooperation and capable of extraordinary achievements through collaboration, they need thoughtfully designed frameworks to channel this collaborative potential.

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Mistrust of authority isn’t going to change any time soon, or perhaps ever. Short of using threat or coercion, the challenge for those who choose to lead in these skeptical times is to build bridges to trust. Earning trust is not a one-and-done activity. You need to continually earn trust through being transparent, available, emotionally reliable, and facilitating a shared sense of purpose.