Trustbusters – 4 Threats to a Leader’s Credibility

Back when I worked in sales, I read a book called Credibility by James Kouzes and Barry Posner.  What they had to say about how leaders gain or lose credibility struck a chord with me.  Now, years later as part of a ministry that works to heal hurting churches, I find their insights bear fresh reflection.

When a congregation is slow to trust its leadership, whether pastoral or lay leadership, it might be good to evaluate whether one the following “trustbusters” has occurred. Any one of these can compromise a leader’s credibility and have an impact on a church’s view of its leaders—until it is faced and reconciled.

Trustbuster #1 – A lack of integrity:  This is the factor most commonly associated with the loss of credibility. Want to place doubts in the minds of those you lead? Breaching the trust of your people through a moral failure, a financial impropriety, a lie or misrepresentation of the truth, or a broken promise is the quickest way to compromise your congregation’s trust in you.

Trustbuster #2 – A lack of competence:  While not as obvious as a breach of integrity, incompetence (which can be due to either ignorance or inexperience) also short circuits your credibility with those you lead. People in the Body of Christ are incredibly patient, but a pattern of mishandled situations will erode their trust.  Unfortunately, church leaders don’t always ask for help when they are in over their heads, which compounds the problem. When the way we handle challenges becomes a crisis in and of itself, we place doubts in the minds of followers about our credibility as leaders.

Trustbuster #3 – A lack of enthusiasm:  Authentic enthusiasm about the future, a clear vision about where you are headed as a church, makes you someone your congregation wants to follow.  A lack of enthusiasm, on the other hand, creates a disconnection between you as a leader and those whose help you need to make the vision for your church a reality.  That lack of enthusiasm can occur when we face road blocks or resistance, especially over a long period, but if a leader can no longer be excited by their potential future, followers feel it and trust will wane.

Think about the three aspects of credibility Kouzes and Posner identify.  You need all three to keep the trust of your congregation.  The lack of any one can be a problem. You can be competent and enthusiastic as a leader, but, if you lack integrity, creditably goes out the window and few will follow.. Likewise you can be above reproach and enthusiastic about the future, but undermined by a lack of competence.  And, even if you have integrity and competence, if you get worn down and your enthusiasm languishes, your congregation will sense the emotional disconnect and become cautious about following your lead.

While Kouzes and Posner correctly nail these three key trustbusters, there is a fourth crucial trustbuster that they miss. It is one that we commonly see at Blessing Point in our work with churches, and it is the one most easily overlooked.

Trustbuster #4 – The corporate history of your church/organization:  We have documented this again and again, and it squares with crucial biblical principles leaders often overlook about the way God works with His people.  Amazingly, a leader can enjoy a high degree of integrity, be highly competent and enthusiastic—all three of Kouses and Posner’s keys—but corporate wounds carried from previous church crises, long before the present leader(s) arrived on the scene, have infected the congregation. The broken trust with previous leaders makes it hard for current leaders to be seen as credible.

In many cases all four trustbusters can be remedied.  Integrity failures can be repented of and failed leaders restored to ministry.  Incompetence can be cured by a humble spirit and teachable disposition.  Enthusiasm can be renewed with rest and encouragement. But the corporate history of your church, takes special effort to address! 

If your church has been wounded by the failure of a previous leader or leaders, take time to learn how to care for your flock in this situation.  We have witnessed in churches the gravest of corporate sins healed and trust in leadership restored if present leaders will be courageous enough to do what God says needs to be done.  A resource like Healing the Heart of Your Church by Ken Quick will start you down this path.

However, be warned: Knowing historical wounds exist in your church and ignoring them will further deplete your credibility as leaders.  Giving in to the fear of what might happen if you bring old crises out into the open to hear what Jesus may tell you to do about them can be seen as a failure of leadership too.  Leaders are responsible to do whatever helps the people under their charge, even if they are afraid.

Trust is the coin of God’s kingdom. It is hard to function as a leader in His churches when you do not have it. Sometimes the broken trust is in the heart of the leader and sometimes in the heart of the congregation and often in both!  In any of those scenarios leadership won’t get far unless trust gets restored, and to do that, you must listen carefully to the Lord of your church and do what He says, as hard and as scary as it may be.

You can explore how your church may have been impacted by “trustbusters” using our free online survey: The ChurchScan Inventory.

Rev. Mark Barnard serves as President of Blessing Point Ministries which works to heal churches that have been wounded by painful crises. Mark is author of Diagnosing the Heart of Your Church: How Ministry Church Can Assess Systemic Corporate Dysfunction.