Compassion Improves Trust

Cathie Leimbach • August 9, 2022

“People put faith in those who care beyond themselves,” says David Horsager. “And feeling cared for increases trust.”

Compassion can be defined as “concern for the sufferings or misfortunes of others” or “a kind friendly presence in the face of what’s difficult”. Compassion is having patience and giving support to others who are experiencing tough circumstances or situations. 

How considerate and understanding are we when those around us aren’t perfect? When they hurt or disappoint us? When they experience a setback or difficulty in their life? We appreciate when others don’t add to our troubles when we are already down. How much grace do we show others when the tables are turned? 

Compassion enables us to understand ourselves better and others better, and the more we understand others the more we will want to relieve their suffering. Here are a few ways we can develop the ability to see things from someone else's perspective and offer them support.

  • Ask them open-ended questions to understand their challenges and how they are feeling? It can be as simple as, “You seem down today. How can I help you?”
  • Practice active listening. This includes listening to what they are telling you without interrupting, making eye contact, asking questions to increase your understanding, and repeating back to them what you think you heard to check if you are hearing their message.
  • Offer to help them, even in a small way. Take them a meal, drive them to an appointment, clean their house, or give their child a ride to soccer practice.

We appreciate others who don’t make our difficult circumstances more difficult. When others’ help us handle the trials of life, it builds our trust in them. What do we to show compassion to others, to help reduce or overcome their difficult circumstances? Practicing compassion is an important factor in being a person worthy of trust. 

The Power of Strategic Choice: Making Room for What Matters

By Cathie Leimbach • November 10, 2025
In most organizations, the instinct is to add —more goals, more projects, more meetings. But as Juliet Funt, founder of the Juliet Funt Group, teaches in her Strategic Choice process, real leadership strength lies in deciding what to stop doing . Strategic Choice is the intentional narrowing of priorities—cutting away the clutter so teams can focus on what truly drives results. It’s a disciplined act of letting go: saying no to good ideas so there’s room for the great ones. Funt’s approach challenges leaders to pause, think, and create the mental and operational space their people need to perform at their best. By removing unnecessary tasks and misplaced effort, leaders make room for precision, innovation, and real thinking time. This isn’t about doing less—it’s about doing what matters most. When businesses adopt this mindset, they replace overwhelm with clarity and regain control of their time, energy, and outcomes. For small to mid-sized companies, embracing Strategic Choice can transform busyness into focus—and that focus is where sustainable growth begins. Want a quick visual overview? View Strategic Choice: Making Room for What Matters to see how this process helps leaders focus on what truly drives results.

Unlock Your Team's Potential: Fix Dysfunction, Boost the Bottom Line!

By Cathie Leimbach • November 4, 2025
Hey team leaders! Ever wonder why some companies soar while others stumble? Patrick Lencioni's bestseller, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team , nails it: workplace dysfunctions such as no trust, fear of conflict, lack of commitment, avoiding accountability, and ignoring results lead to mediocre performance at best. But here's the good news—smart leadership development changes the game! Start with building trust . Train leaders to open up and be vulnerable. Teams bond, ideas flow, and costly mistakes drop. Next, embrace healthy conflict . Teach team leaders to make it safe for team members to share the pros and cons of current or new ways of doing things. This helps everyone understand different perspectives. Then, drive commitment . Leaders who clarify goals, ask everyone to share their level of buy-in, and address their concerns get everyone bought in. People focus on high value work and get more done. . Hold folks accountable through coaching. Leaders learn to give kind, direct feedback by praising good work and calmly providing more training as needed. Turnover plummets and the quality and quantity of work improves. Finally, focus on results . Be clear on expectations. Keep score by monitoring progress weekly or daily. Acknowledge team wins when the goals are met. Winning sports teams pay attention to these Five Behaviors of a Team. How would a World Series winner have been determined this week without trust among the players and coaches, openness to tough coaching, the whole team working together, players focusing on their specific positions, and getting players around the bases to get the top score? Every workplace can benefit from these team behaviors as well. Lencioni's research proves it: Companies who prepare their leaders to overcome these 5 common workplace dysfunctions, improve the culture and see huge financial gains. Invest in your leaders today. Your bottom line will thank you! Click here to learn more about the painful cost of team dysfunction.