5 steps to build actual trust as a leader

Marta Llobet
2 days ago
5 min read

In fast-growing organizations, leadership often becomes louder, faster, and more performative, especially in environments where being decisive and certain is rewarded more than being grounded and clear.Yet what actually determines whether teams perform, speak up, and stay is something far less visible.

Google’s Project Aristotle found that psychological safety – the ability to trust that you can speak honestly without consequences – is the single most important factor in high-performing teams, more decisive than talent or experience.

This is exactly where Sarah Lechner’s work begins. Before working as a leadership coach, she built and scaled companies herself – as a founder and later as a VP in high-growth environments. Today, she works with leaders who are technically strong, deeply responsible, and often exhausted by carrying too much alone. Many of them have mastered performance, but quietly feel disconnected from themselves.

Her core belief is simple but uncomfortable: trust is the operating system of leadership, not a nice-to-have.

Trust is not a soft skill. It is the invisible infrastructure that determines whether strategy lives or dies.

Woman in a cream outfit sits thoughtfully beside a large quote about authentic leadership. Cream background, gray text. — Sarah Lechner about leadership

“When leaders transform from within, the outside world follows.” — Sarah Lechner

why trust is the real leadership differentiator

Distributed teams, rapid change, and constant uncertainty mean leaders can no longer rely on control or having all the answers.

People don’t follow certainty. They follow leaders they trust – especially in uncertainty.

Trust creates psychological safety, speeds up collaboration, and allows teams to take ownership instead of waiting for permission. Without it, even the best strategies stall. With it, teams move faster with less friction. Trust allows people to stay fully themselves at work.

Based on her coaching work and lived leadership experience, Sarah breaks trust down into five concrete practices.

1. trust yourself first

Leadership always mirrors the inner state of the leader. When leaders don’t trust themselves, they over-control others.

Self-trust grows through consistency: listening to your intuition, acting in line with your values, and doing what you say you’ll do – even when no one is watching. Leaders who are centered in themselves create safety without trying to.

When leaders abandon their own inner clarity to appear competent, teams feel it immediately.

practical shift: Take five minutes at the end of each day to ask: Where did I act in line with my values today – and where didn’t I?

2. give trust before it’s proven

Many leaders believe trust must be earned. The result? Everyone waits, nothing moves.

Sarah challenges this logic. Trust grows when it’s extended first, in small but intentional ways. When leaders assume positive intent and give ownership early, people rise to the responsibility instead of shrinking under surveillance.

Extending trust is uncomfortable because it exposes the leader’s own fear of losing control.

practical shift: Hand over a small decision or project without micromanaging the outcome. Observe what changes.

3. be human, not flawless

Perfection doesn’t build trust. Authenticity does.

Leaders who admit uncertainty, talk openly about challenges, and own mistakes signal that it’s safe to be honest. Especially for senior leaders, this kind of openness creates permission for others to show up fully instead of defensively.

Armor creates distance. Presence creates trust.

practical shift: Share one real challenge or learning moment with your team this week – without turning it into a lesson or justification.

4. align words and actions

Integrity is quiet but decisive. Teams notice when leaders say one thing and do another – especially under pressure.

Trust builds when actions consistently match intentions. This includes keeping small promises, setting clear boundaries, and being predictable in how you respond when things get uncomfortable.

Especially under pressure, integrity becomes visible. Teams don’t judge mistakes, they judge misalignment.

practical shift: Follow through on one promise you’ve been postponing. Reliability compounds.

5. let go of control without letting go of responsibility

Trust is not about being hands-off. It’s about confidence in your ability to respond rather than control every outcome.

Sarah sees many leaders struggle here. Releasing control feels risky, especially when stakes are high. But control signals distrust. Clear expectations combined with shared ownership create stronger outcomes than constant oversight.

Control often masks fear. Fear of not being enough, not being worthy, not being needed. When leaders address that fear internally, control becomes unnecessary.

practical shift: Pause before reacting in a tense moment. Ask yourself what this situation is teaching you before deciding how to act.

what happens when leaders change from the inside

In her coaching work, Sarah often supports leaders who feel overwhelmed but can’t quite name why. As they shift their internal assumptions – around responsibility, control, and self-trust – their teams respond almost immediately. The external dynamic reorganizes when the inner narrative shifts.

Decisions become clearer. Collaboration accelerates. Engagement rises. Trust becomes contagious. In teams where trust is intentionally cultivated, Sarah sees leaders move faster with less friction – and teams take more ownership without being asked.

Research supports this. Trust reduces stress, increases cooperation, and directly impacts team performance. But Sarah’s work highlights something just as important: trust doesn’t start with policies or processes. It starts with the leader’s inner clarity and integrity.

how to build trust as a daily leadership practice

Trust isn’t built through intention alone – it’s built through repetition. In her coaching work, Sarah often returns to small, consistent practices that strengthen self-trust first.

daily self-check-in Take a short pause each morning or evening to notice what’s present – thoughts, emotions, tension. Self-awareness is the entry point to self-leadership.
intentional letting go of control Set a daily intention for how you want to show up as a leader. Run small experiments where you consciously give trust and reflect on what happens.
follow-through and reliability Keeping even small promises strengthens inner confidence. Leaders who trust themselves become trustworthy to others.
gratitude and reflection Reflect on what worked and where progress was made. This builds resilience and reduces the need for control over time.

final thought

Trust isn’t built through big gestures or leadership slogans. It’s built through daily choices, small behaviors, and the courage to lead without armor.

When leaders transform from within, the outside world follows.

Trust begins the moment a leader stops abandoning themselves and starts to lead from within.