Off-battlefield behavior (skills, hitting targets like earnings)
Trust
Personal trustworthiness off the battlefield
Described by Navy SEALs as: "I may trust you with my life, but do I trust you with my money and my wife?"
Ideal vs Toxic Team Members
Undesired:
Low Performer, Low Trust
Highly Desired:
High Performer, High Trust
Toxic:
High Performer, Low Trust
Considered toxic leaders and team members, detrimental in the long run.
Preferred Over High Performer with Low Trust:
Medium Performer, High Trust
Sometimes even Low Performer, High Trust
Business Implications
Businesses often have metrics heavily skewed towards measuring performance over trust.
Promotion and bonuses often favor high performers, inadvertently promoting toxicity.
Identifying High Trust Individuals
Asking team members can quickly identify toxic members ("the asshole") and the most trustworthy/natural leaders.
The person trusted most is likely fostering a supportive environment and contributing significantly to team success, despite not necessarily being the highest individual performer.
Strategies
Shift focus to include trustworthiness in evaluations.
Recognize and reward those who build cohesive and supportive teams, rather than purely individual high performers.