Tip #2 to Improve Employee Engagement

Given the important role that leaders play in driving employee engagement, leaders must work hard to gain the trust of their teams. A powerful way to establish trust is to employ one of the mind’s most basic mechanisms for determining loyalty: the perception of similarity. If people can feel a link with you, their empathy for and willingness to cooperate with you will increase (HBR. "The Simplest Way to Build Trust").

When leaders share their personal stories, they will inevitably share insights that will show their teams how they are similar. We encourage leaders to be thoughtful and intentional when drafting their personal stories. We also encourage leaders to share their personal stories with a peer before sharing with their own team. This vetting exercise (1) identifies portions of the story that may need to be edited, and (2) helps build trust amongst peer leaders. Here are a few questions that will help leaders build their stories...