Issue #13: Trust Is Sick. You Can Be the Cure.
2026 is going down as a record-setting Flu season.
But there's a bigger sickness spreading faster and wider: an epidemic of mistrust, distrust, and no trust.
And unlike the flu, there’s no quick shot in the arm to protect against the fallout.
We're living through what might be the most confusing era for trust in modern history.
Trust in government? At historic lows. Trust in media? Depends who you ask (and which network they watch). Trust in social media? Let's not even go there. Trust that AI won't eventually take your job? ChatGPT told me not to worry about it.
Even the most sacred institutions we're supposed to trust are losing ground.
According to Harvard Medicine Magazine, trust in scientists dropped from 58% to 36% between 2020 and 2025. Hospitals and doctors? Down from 70% to barely 40%.
Scientists! Doctors?!
Those are scary low levels, and it's not bouncing back any time soon. So where are people supposed to turn?
Work? (Yes. No. Maybe. Definitely yes. Or… maybe.)
That's right — the place we spend 40+ hours a week. The one place where expectations are supposed to be written down and agreements honored. The place leadership is meant to be cultivated, curated, and yes, even trusted.
But is that where trust is thriving?
A 2025 Gartner survey found only 48% of employees trust senior leaders, a figure echoed in a November 2025 HBR feature where 86% of senior leaders believe they're trusted, but only 48% of employees agree.
Let me translate that gap: if you're a leader reading this and thinking "Well, MY team trusts me," there's a decent chance you're in the 86% who are wrong.
I have been there. And it stinks. But that gap doesn't have to be permanent.
Work can be that safe haven for authenticity and trust. Frankly, it needs to be.
And leaders have way more control over workplace trust than politicians have over government trust or journalists have over media trust.
You can't fix the world. But you can be a better listener, more empathetic, and more honest.
Leaders need to recognize that trust is the most critical and most fragile thing they steward. It's the foundation of every relationship, every team, every business outcome — which is exactly why it demands such careful attention.
So let's talk about what actually builds it — and what quietly destroys it.
Trust Is A Verb. Now Act.
I like to think of trust as a reduction sauce. It takes time to build, requires constant attention, and concentrates through repeated, consistent heat.
But here's the thing about reduction sauces... one moment of inattention burns the whole thing. And once it's burned, you can't just add water and pretend it's fine.
Trust works the same way.
It's not something you earn once with a good onboarding experience or a well-worded mission statement. It's something you practice daily through the alignment between what you say and what you do.
The "psychological contract" — that unwritten belief that loyalty and hard work will be reciprocated with security, fair treatment, and transparency — is real. And in 2025, employees watched that contract get tested. With AI initiatives ramping up in 2026, they're watching even more closely.
Your team doesn't judge trust by your intent. They judge it by the pattern of your decisions over time.
Remember that 86% versus 48% gap from earlier? That's not a rounding error. That's a chasm. And chasms don't get bridged with town halls and talking points. They get filled with lots and lots of better decisions over time (depending on how big that chasm really is).
The gap widens when leaders use corporate speak to soften hard truths. "Strategic realignment." "Right-sizing." "Operational efficiency."
Employees hear: "Your job is negotiable. Our values are negotiable. But our quarterly numbers? Those are sacred."
Too much of that and suddenly the reduction hasn't just burned, it's caught the entire kitchen on fire.
And look, I know what you're thinking: "Okay, Matt, I get it. Trust is fragile. The kitchen's on fire. What am I supposed to DO about it?"
Fair question.
Luckily, trust isn't built through grand gestures or inspirational speeches.
It's built through small, specific, repeatable behaviors that most leaders overlook because they seem too simple to matter. Or to be honest, because they're too busy to notice or too focused on numbers to prioritize things differently.
Things like explaining the "why" before announcing the "what." Admitting when you don't have all the answers. Following through on your commitments. Saying the hard thing out loud instead of letting people fill in the blanks with their worst assumptions. Really giving a damn about your people first. These are the things that matter — and things you can start doing right now.
Not groundbreaking. But foundational.
🧂 Why Trust Works
Life is already hard. Let's not make it harder by working against millions of years of brain evolution.
Trust is a neurochemical performance enhancer with measurable business outcomes. And since you want good business outcomes and since (almost) all of your team members have fully functioning brains, this makes for a perfect union to leverage.
Here's what the research shows:
High-Trust Teams Outperform Low-Trust Teams — By A Lot Research from 2025 shows that organizations with high employee trust see up to 50% higher productivity, 76% more engagement, and significantly lower burnout rates compared to low-trust environments. Paul Zak's neuroscience research reveals why: high-trust climates correlate with higher oxytocin and lower cortisol, which means better collaboration, faster problem-solving, and stronger performance. We like all three of those things!
The Perception Gap Is Costing You Talent Gaps When leaders believe they're trusted, but employees disagree, the disconnect shows up as: people leaving for "better opportunities" (read: better leadership), top performers going quiet instead of speaking up, and innovation stalling because nobody wants to take risks. Fast Company's January 2026 piece got it right: "Trust and talent will define leadership" in this era. Not tools. Not AI.
Inconsistency Is the Silent Killer Leadership psychology research published in 2025 shows that inconsistency between words and actions erodes trust faster than any single scandal. It's not about being perfect. It's about being predictable. When you say "transparency matters" but communicate major decisions via hidden internal websites or leaked memos, people notice. When you claim "psychological safety" but shut down dissenting opinions in meetings, people remember. Alignment on what you say and what you do matters.
🍴 Try a Bite This Week
You can't fix a trust crisis with a pizza party or an all-hands deck. But you can start rebuilding credibility with three specific behaviors you can practice today.
🍴 The Decision Transparency Template For any decision that affects your team this week — priorities, workload, resourcing — share three things before you announce the "what": (1) Here's the decision. (2) Here are the constraints and trade-offs I weighed. (3) Here's what this means for you. Then ask: "What questions do you have?" Not "Any questions?" — that gets crickets. Make it an invitation, not a formality. Trust builds when people see how decisions actually get made, even when it's messy.
🍴 The Spotlight Specificity Practice Pick one team member per day for two weeks. Tell them — in writing or in a 1:1 — one specific behavior you appreciated recently, why it mattered, and the impact it had. Not "great job on the presentation." Try: "When you pushed back on that timeline in front of the client, you protected the team from burnout and helped us keep our promise on quality." Trust builds when people feel seen for what they actually do, not just thanked for "being great."
🍴 The "Walk the Talk" Retro (Advanced Move) Once you've practiced the first two for a few weeks, try this: List three stated values with your team. For each, ask: "What did we do recently that lived this value?" and "Where did we contradict it?" Don't defend. Don't explain. Just listen and write it down. Then choose one concrete behavior you'll change next week and say it out loud in front of everyone. Trust builds when leaders are willing to see — and own — the gap between words and actions.
💡 A Final Thought
Trust is the most basic ingredient in every relationship that matters. Your marriage. Your friendships. Your kids. You know this already.
So why do we act like it's some mystical leadership concept that requires a consultant, a framework, and a three-day offsite to figure out?
It's not complicated. It's just hard.
Hard because it requires doing what you said you'd do — even when you're tired, busy, or distracted. Hard because it means explaining your reasoning when it would be easier to just announce the decision. Hard because it demands consistency when nobody's watching and there's no applause for follow-through.
The truth is, we make trust harder than it needs to be. We add corporate speak. We hide behind process. We convince ourselves people won't understand the real story, so we package it in euphemisms and hope nobody notices.
But they notice. They always notice. And you notice.
Fortunately, you already know how to build trust. You do it with your spouse when you keep your word about picking up groceries. You do it with your kids when you show up to their games like you said you would. You do it with your friends when you tell them the truth even when it's uncomfortable.
You just need to do it at work, too. We all do.
Same ingredients. Same recipe. Just a different kitchen.
🌶️ Add Your Spice
What's the hardest part of building trust for you right now — the follow-through, the honesty, or the consistency? Share it in the comments. Sometimes admitting what's hard is the first step.
If this resonated, share it with someone who's committed to closing the gap between words and actions.
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Until next time... lead well and stay curious. — MT