Your role as an EA presents unique trust challenges that require careful navigation. You often hold confidential information that impacts people’s work lives yet you can’t always explain the full context of decisions or changes.
Be honest about what you can and can’t share.
Rather than being vague, say something like: ‘I can’t share details about the timeline yet but I can tell you that your team’s concerns have been raised with leadership.’ This acknowledges their worries while respecting confidentiality requirements.
Cultural and communication style differences can also impact trust. Some colleagues prefer direct communication while others find it abrupt. Pay attention to how different people like to receive information and adjust your approach accordingly. What builds trust with one person might undermine it with another.
Time pressures often work against trust-building. When everyone’s rushing, it’s tempting to skip the relationship maintenance that trust requires. But even small gestures (like a brief check in, acknowledgment of someone’s extra effort or a genuine thank you) help maintain trust during busy periods.
The ripple effect of your influence
Your approach to trust influences more than just your direct relationships. When you model trustworthy behaviour, you set expectations for how others interact across the organisation.
This might mean demonstrating how to give constructive feedback without defensiveness, showing how to acknowledge others’ contributions publicly or illustrating how to handle mistakes with grace and accountability. Your executive and colleagues observe these interactions and often mirror them in their own relationships.
Could you create opportunities for trust-building across teams? Think about structuring meetings to encourage input from different perspectives, facilitating informal connections between departments or simply ensuring that people feel heard and valued in their interactions with your office.
Trust as a leadership quality
Building trust isn’t just a professional skill. It’s a leadership quality that can transform organisational culture. When you consistently demonstrate reliability, empathy and integrity, you don’t just make your own job easier. You create an environment where collaboration thrives, innovation flourishes and people genuinely want to contribute their best work.
The investment in trust pays long-term dividends. Teams that trust each other solve problems faster, adapt to change more easily, and support each other through challenges. Your role in fostering this trust makes you invaluable to your organisation’s success.
Remember that trust is both fragile and resilient. It can be damaged quickly but – with consistent effort – it can also be rebuilt stronger than before. Your daily interactions are opportunities to strengthen the trust that makes everything else possible
expertise in interpersonal dynamics has led her to become an engaging presenter and trainer on improving personal and professional relationships, communication and empathy.