Skip to main content

Week 3 [22-28.10.18] Why good leaders make you feel safe?

What makes a great leader? Management theorist Simon Sinek suggests, it’s someone who makes their employees feel secure, who draws staffers into a circle of trust. But creating trust and safety — especially in an uneven economy — means taking on big responsibility. I encourage you to watch the video and answer below questions.


Questions:

1. Do you agree with Simon's circle of trust idea? Why?
2. Do you feel safe around your leaders at school and/or work? What do they do to make you feel so?
3. What else could we do as leaders to make our subordinates feel safe and belong?

Comments

Wojtek Protasik said…
Not entirely. Guy is pretty confident about his ideas, it doesn't mean his right. Assuming human relations are based on this concept doesn't feel reasonable for me. Referring to example about the airlines, there are many reasons that tasks and procedures are strict, these reasons are mostly dead and injured people who get hurt because staff can't follow the rules. Actually the lack of trust is the foundation of flying. Some jobs are not meant for people who can't handle them.

On the other hand I think it's important not to forget about these things and care about the work environment, just not at every cost or just for the sake of the idea. Human factor is not the biggest candidate for a mistake maker without a reason. Trustful environment can boost our will and productiveness but I believe life is not about being happy all the time and rules are needed.
Bartosz Barnat said…
I think that the circle of trust presented by Simon is a good idea because it gives people confidence and feeling of beeing safe but it is not the only thing that should be implemented in good school/company, a social group. There is many other thing that should be considered because when people feel not threatened they tend to get lazy. I feel safe around by school and work enviroment but that doesn't mean that I'm sometimes pushed to do something that I don't want really doing or someone from work don't get angry on me but it's good because it gives me feedback what I should change or improve. The good thing to consider to improve belonging is make friends with people from an establishment and because of that people will tend to feel safer and get better at work.
Unknown said…
1. I agree that if there is trust between an employer and a subordinate, this allows the subordinate to make independent decisions and develops creativity.
2. Yes, of course, I feel safe, because I know that if I make a mistake - they will not fire me, I will always have a chance to fix it. To all, I still have the opportunity to exercise my abilities, they trust me more work, so I have a desire to do better and more.
3. Probably, if possible, pay more attention to employees, know some personal information to congratulate the birth of the child in time, or be more interested in the work done, to give advice or to express their opinion, because the subordinate will always be pleased if they pay attention to his work, so as the boss is always busy.
Marcin Mróz said…
I think that circle of trust could be just one of the ways to organize work between people in some organization. Not following this kind of thinking doesn't necessarily make you a bad leader in my opinion. This is of course the most high-minded way of dealing with your subordinates, but it could not be always effective. Steve Jobs, for example, didn't really care about people, he cared about the final result. Maybe he wasn't loved so much by everyone, but you can't call him a bad leader.
Lack of resposibility and obligation to take the risk is what make us feel safe around our leaders. We know that there is someone who would have to take some crucial decisions and eventually take the blame for them. We just have to do what they tell us to do and we don't have to care about anything else.
Iman Masjedi said…
I recently read an article on the Forbes website: How A Bad Boss Can Make You Sick
We spend an important part of our time in the workplace, job satisfaction and satisfaction and relaxation in the workplace by the leader is one of the most important factors in creativity in the staff.
The health of the work environment and the creation of a sense of power in the employees by the manager/leader will make the employee's ability much higher.
1. I think that circle of trust which is mentioned here is a good idea and it gives feeling of being safe and feel like people belong. It is actually big credit of trust and not everybody are disciplined, focused and trustworthy.
2. Yes, I feel safe. I know that I can talk to him in any doubts and as we have common goal he will help me if needed.
3. In my opinion leaders should create such atmosphere at work that subordinates feel like they are involved in something important so they are willing to try harder to make their work better. When leader create dense atmosphere or it is based on fear of losing the job people usually give up after some period of time and quit.
Unknown said…
1. I don't entirely agree with the circle of trust idea - the one thing that Simon neglects to mention is that trust goes both ways - in order for his idea to work, not only do subordinates need to trust their leader, but their leader needs to trust his subordinates as well. This simply isn't always possible - using his airline example, trusting all airline passangers and employees to do everything properly would most likely end rather poorly.

2. If I feel like I can count on them to back me up when problems occur, I feel safe. If not, then no.

3. Leaders should value their subordinates opinion - they don't neccessarily have to agree with them, but they should at least listen to it and consider it, both because it will make employees feel like they are worth something, and because they might just actually be right.
Marcin Zając said…
I fully agree with Simon's circle of trust idea. People who trust their leaders and feel safe work better, are more creative and bravely propose changes.

At my current work, I feel safe. We have a great atmosphere. Whole team would like to make good product and not only do the most tasks (without paying attention to quality), because of fear of too low performance.

I think it’s also very important to motivate team and shows that theirs work is important.
in my mind thats what's the leader's role is and was always , there is no point in having a leader if we dont feel empowered by his persona at all.
Thats what made all great leaders, the ability to empower others around them so they can achieve more as a unit.

Leaders im around have particular set of skill that empower our teams, they do make final decisions solidifying directions and actions we take, they do come as a decisive member for others to post ideas to. By deciding manually to include less active members they force them to act and keep groups together.

Many "leaders" ive been around quickly forget how much they need to keep the group together is it by organising team activities or just simply forcing each of them to act from time to time.
1
Piotr Ciesla said…
If you find an and example of something that works in nature, usually it works with people. Circle of trust is a good attempt of explaining how team and leadership works.
I have a good relationship with my boss. I can call him a leader. He watch over us, protect us from overload and sometimes if it is necessity, he can come and tell us “can you work a little bit longer, because we need to do it until tomorrow”. Everybody gets it because he is staying there with us, Sometimes he bring some cookies to the meanings. Sometimes it is just simple “how are you”.
Leaders should be your friend and the first place and the second as boss. They have to be a part of the team.
Unknown said…
It is the oldest debate which kind of boss is more productive to employees. On one side, a strict boss that uses power and pressure to be sure that the job is done. Which can cause employees to feel like they are in a hostile environment. One other side, a nice boss who gives workers support and love to make the workspace feel like a family. And if he is to nice, employees start to feel a bit lazy to deliver their job on time.
Both sides of an argument can be done badly in wrong hands. So it is important to have a good balance.
I don’t fully agree with Simon's circle of trust idea, in my opinion it is much more complicated. Trust in organization is very important and without it is very hard to maintain the organization itself. With proper relationship between leader and his subordinates , people can give their best and be creative in solving problems to help the organization. However trust is not everything, qualifications and ability to make hard decisions are also essential. For example, when Titanic was sinking, the officers on the board had to choose who can enter the boats and who must stay and die. This is extreme example, but it show that sometimes leader must make extreme decisions or else everyone will suffer.
I feel quite safe in my environment, but it is hard for me to say what my leaders do that I feel that way. I suppose it is because they do not try to openly take everything for themselves.
I am not kind of leader, so I have never wondered what can I do as a leader. I think that speaking with subordinates about problems to solve them is the best way.
I really liked Simon's idea. I had a chance to work for different bosses and I've seen both good and poor leaders. But until today I wasn't really looking at it through this circle of trust lens. And I find it pretty compeling. With a good leader you feel much more condifent, you feel like you belong to something bigger then yourself and you can invest yourself it better future of everyone involved. With poor leader you constantly feel threatened, finding ways to secure your place, to make sure that blame will not be directed at you. And when you cooperate with others you often see the same - it's hard to trust your coworkers when you see how they are preparing to blame you for any mistake on the project just to be sure they will remain safe.
I'm not a business oriented person, but if I ever have a chance to create an organization, where I can be a leader, I will definitely use this idea. I think we all deserve this kind of trust and feeling of safety.
This comment has been removed by the author.
I am not sure if if of the circle of trust is the most effective one. However, I am sure I would prefer to work in environment that follows it. I think that it's efficiency depends on people. I am sure I would perform better If I knew that I won't be punished immediately after my first failure. On the other hand if we put too much trust in people and don't pressure them they may lack motivation to perform. I feel safe around my leaders but it wasn't always the case. Sometimes the pressure that was put on me, actually made me do worse. Taking everything into account, I think that Simon's idea is right but, a good leader can find a balance between trust and pressure on his subordinates. From my point of view this is the key to success of every organisation.
I have previously read a couple of books by Simon Sinek and I have a great respect for him, his ideas and his methodology. I agree with the idea that a good leader should make their team members feel safe and confident.

I’ll answer the second question with a twist — I am a team leader in my company. I try to be as empathetic as I can and follow the guidance of people like Simon. I can pretty confidently say that I feel I managed to do that. My team members feel safe and confident enough to be honest and have trust to each other.

In my opinion, leaders are different from managers in that they avoid implying and enforcing employee-employer relationship — e.g. they don’t call their team members „subordinates”. They also need to have the ability to listen to their colleagues (as opposed to just hearing them) and be openly helpful.
Unknown said…
1. I strongly agree with Simon Sinek’s idea regarding circle of trust. The reason for that was already presented in the video - that’s a natural behaviour for a mankind, when people belonging to a group in which everyone trusts each other, are eager to cooperate and struggle with difficulties.
2. I have to admit that in my current workplace I don’t really feel safe around my leaders. Actually, most of them don’t really understand problems and challenges facing employees and that causes a lot of misunderstandings and sometimes lack of support form their site.
3. First and foremost, leaders have to really understand their employees’ tasks, problems and challenges. They have to put themselves in employees’ shoes in order to be able to be a real support for them. Secondly they have to lead the way and earn employees’ respect by managing difficult situations and conflicts quickly and unfailingly.
Yes , I do agree. I think if there is a trust between epmloyee and manager , work would be done in much efficient way.
Yes if my leader is experienced and he knows what to do I feel much safer and confident at my work. Its very important that ur supervisor's your mentor as well, a good leader should be aware what is happening amon teammates, every conflict should be solved asap.
I think good leaders care about integation among team, taks signed by leader should improve cooporation in team.
Unknown said…
Circle of trust pushes creativity because it frees people. When we are not limited, it leads to innovation and discoveries. On the other hand to some extent, we should have some limit to break them.

If leader is a confident and charismatic person, then yes I do feel safe. At work, from my point of view, I can feel safer when leaders have more experience than me.

We can be close to them. Play open cards and be honest even in not so positive situations. It might be not so good at the beginning, but it pays off.

Popular posts from this blog

Week 11 [03-09.06.2019] The problem with ecological cars emission in UK

The problem with ecological cars emission in UK Since the adoption of the European Emission Allowance Directive in the European Parliament, all car makers have tried to submit. Since 1992, the Euro I standard has been in force, which limited the emission of carbon monoxide to the atmosphere. The Euro VI standard currently applies, which limits the series of exhaust gases. These include: hydrocarbons, nitrogen and carbon oxides, and dust.   The most significant change was brought by the Euro IV standard. For the first time it introduced the limitation of nitrogen oxides, which are responsible for the harmful compounds of smog.   What is smog?   Smog consists of sulfur oxides, nitrogen and carbon. In addition, solid substances such as suspended dust (PM). Dust suspend in atmospheric aerosols may be in liquid and solid form. These can be particles of sea salt, clouds from the Sahara and artificial compounds made by people. These compounds often come fr

Week 12 (12.01-18.01.15) Are you an early bird or a night owl ?

Owls are nocturnal creatures. They’re wide awake at night and they sleep during the day. If this sounds like bliss to you, then, like about 20 percent of the population who find themselves most active at around 9 pm, you may fall into the same category as our feathered friend. Night owls often have difficulty waking up in the morning, and like to be up late at night.  Studies of animal behaviour indicate that being a night owl may actually be built into some people’s genes. This would explain why those late-to-bed, late-to-rise people find it so difficult to change their behaviour. The trouble for night owls is that they just have to be at places such as work and school far too early. This is when the alarm clock becomes the night owl’s most important survival tool. Experts say that one way for a night owl to beat their dependence on their alarm clocks is to sleep with the curtains open. The Theory is that if they do so, the morning sunlight will awaken them gently and naturally.

Week 4 [06-12.11.2017] This is what happens when you reply to spam email.

James Veitch is a British comedian. In today’s Ted Talk James with characteristic for himself a sense of humor shows how he deals with spam emails and why responding to junk messages may be sometimes dangerous. Questions: What do you think about James’s  way of dealing with spam? Why are junk messages legal, even though it sometimes may be a fraud? Dou you have a problem with spam? How do you deal with with it?