How to Build Trust with Your Team (Even If You’re New)

By Nicholas J. DeYoung

The Weight of the First Impression

Trust is the foundation of all healthy leadership—and it becomes even more essential during seasons of change. When you step into a new role, especially after a leadership transition or during an interim season, you’re not just inheriting a position; you’re walking into a story mid-chapter. The people around you carry memories, attachments, wounds, and expectations. Some may be cautiously optimistic. Others may be skeptical, guarded, or even burned out from what came before. In these moments, the work of leadership isn’t just strategic—it’s deeply relational. Your first priority isn’t casting vision or making changes. It’s cultivating trust.

So how do you build that trust when you’re the “new guy” or “new gal” in the room? How do you lay relational foundations in unfamiliar soil? This article offers ten guiding practices for earning trust authentically—even when you’re starting from scratch.

Understand the Trust Deficit

Every leader begins with a trust balance—and more often than not, it’s in the red. That’s not necessarily because you’ve done anything wrong. It’s simply because people don’t know you yet. And if they’ve gone through a painful transition, or if they loved the previous leader, or if there’s been turmoil in the organization, the trust deficit is even deeper. Understanding this dynamic is crucial because it reshapes your initial posture. You’re not starting from a clean slate; you’re stepping into a space that has already been shaped by history, emotion, and context.

Instead of rushing to establish your own voice or agenda, begin by listening to the story the team is already living. Ask thoughtful, open-ended questions that invite people to share their experience. “What’s something you hope stays the same under new leadership?” or “What’s something that’s felt hard in recent months?” These kinds of questions help you identify both pain points and pillars of strength. Recognizing and honoring what your team has been through isn’t just kind—it’s strategic. It tells people you care about who they are, not just what they do. And that care becomes the first deposit in the trust account.

Prioritize Presence Over Performance

In our achievement-driven culture, new leaders often feel pressure to impress quickly. They assume trust will come through visionary speeches, big initiatives, or bold problem-solving. But in reality, trust doesn’t hinge on performance—it hinges on presence. When people feel seen, heard, and valued by you as a person, they’re more likely to give you the benefit of the doubt as a leader.

This means being physically and emotionally available. Walk the halls. Attend team meetings without needing to take over. Join others for lunch or coffee without an agenda. Make it a point to show up in spaces where people are already gathered, rather than always summoning them to your office. This kind of low-stakes proximity begins to humanize you. And in roles of spiritual or organizational leadership, people need more than a decision-maker—they need someone they feel they know.

Presence also means being attentive. Make eye contact. Remember names. Learn something personal about each person you work with. Write notes. Follow up. Over time, this consistency in presence builds a safety net of trust—one that doesn’t require perfection, just sincerity.

Communicate Early, Often, and with Clarity

One of the greatest sources of mistrust in organizations is not conflict—it’s confusion. When people don’t know what’s happening, they start to fill in the blanks. And those assumptions are rarely generous. That’s why clarity and consistency in communication is essential from day one. Even if you don’t have all the answers (and you won’t), what you say—and how you say it—will either foster security or suspicion.

Great communicators know how to name reality with honesty and hope. Let your team know what you do know, what you don’t, what you’re working on, and when they can expect to hear from you next. Even saying, “I don’t have an answer yet, but I’ll circle back in a week” goes a long way toward building credibility. Regular updates through emails, all-hands meetings, or informal check-ins help normalize transparency and foster predictability—two ingredients that build trust over time.

And remember: tone matters. Be clear, but not cold. Be direct, but not defensive. Your words should serve your people, not just protect your leadership.

Lead with Curiosity, Not Assumptions

One of the fastest ways to erode trust is to assume you already know what’s going on. Every system has its own logic. Every tradition has its own origin story. What might seem outdated, ineffective, or strange to you may actually be deeply meaningful to your team—or rooted in a set of constraints you haven’t yet learned.

That’s why curiosity is your greatest asset as a new leader. When you approach your team and your new context with a learner’s mindset, you signal humility. You communicate that you’re not here to bulldoze, but to understand. You’re not here to impose your will, but to steward a shared future.

Ask questions like, “What do you think works well here?” or “If you could improve one thing about our culture, what would it be?” And truly listen to the answers. Don’t rush to defend your ideas. Don’t correct their input. Just listen. Take notes. Thank them. The act of listening—really listening—earns more trust than most declarations ever will.

Align Action with Words

People are watching to see if your behavior matches your language. If you talk about transparency but make secretive decisions, trust erodes. If you preach about empowerment but micromanage your team, trust deteriorates. But when your words and actions align, even in small ways, you establish a reputation of integrity.

That means doing what you say you’ll do. If you commit to a follow-up conversation, don’t forget. If you promise to look into something, actually look into it. If you say you care about feedback, don’t dismiss it when it’s uncomfortable. These small acts of consistency create a cumulative effect. They tell your team that you’re not just using leadership language—you’re living it out.

And here’s the good news: perfection isn’t required. People don’t need you to get everything right. But they do need to see you own it when you fall short. A simple, sincere apology can do more for trust than an elaborate justification ever could.

Respect the History, While Leading Toward the Future

Many new leaders come in with fresh vision, fresh ideas, and a deep desire to move forward. That’s a gift. But vision that ignores or dishonors the past will always meet resistance. People are more willing to embrace change when they know their story is being seen and respected—not erased.

Take time to understand the culture, language, and memories that define your new team or congregation. What events have shaped their identity? What traditions hold deep meaning? Who are the people who’ve carried the weight in previous seasons? Learn these stories not just as background knowledge, but as sacred history.

And when you start to cast vision for the future, connect it to that history. Say things like, “This church has always valued deep community. What would it look like to carry that forward in a new way?” or “You’ve endured some hard seasons, and your faithfulness shows. I want to honor that as we take next steps.” This approach doesn’t water down leadership—it roots it in relationship.

Clarify What You’re For

Too often, leadership gets reduced to control—telling people what not to do, what to avoid, what’s off-limits. But trust grows when leaders clearly and passionately articulate what they are for. Your team wants to know what drives you. What values shape your decisions? What’s the purpose behind your leadership?

Start by naming your convictions in simple, relational language. For example, “I’m for building a culture where people feel safe to speak up.” Or, “I’m for empowering every team member to use their unique gifts in meaningful ways.” These declarations don’t have to be sweeping mission statements—they just need to be clear, consistent, and compelling.

And when you’re navigating tough decisions or organizational tensions, come back to these values. Use them as anchors. This helps your team interpret your leadership through the lens of your deeper convictions—not just surface-level outcomes.

Embrace Vulnerability (With Wisdom)

We often think leaders must project strength and confidence at all times. But the truth is, people don’t trust perfect leaders—they trust authentic ones. And authenticity requires vulnerability.

This doesn’t mean spilling your insecurities or making every meeting a therapy session. It means being honest about your learning curve. Admitting when you don’t know something. Owning your mistakes when they happen. Saying “I need help” instead of pretending you’ve got it under control. These moments of humility foster connection—and connection fosters trust.

Use vulnerability wisely. Know your audience. Discern what and when to share. But don’t be afraid to let your team see your humanity. It’s not weakness. It’s leadership with a soul.

Invest in One-on-One Relationships

No matter how strong your public presence or communication skills, trust is most deeply built in personal connection. Group meetings are helpful for alignment—but it’s the one-on-one conversations that build relational depth.

Schedule intentional time with individuals on your team, especially during your first few months. Ask about their role, their passions, their frustrations, and their hopes for the future. Learn how they feel about the team culture, and what support they need to thrive. Let them speak freely—and respond with genuine interest, not pre-planned solutions.

Over time, these relational investments create a web of trust that strengthens the entire organization. And they give you insights you simply can’t get through formal reports or staff meetings.

Be Patient—Trust Takes Time

In our results-oriented world, it’s easy to feel pressure for immediate buy-in. But trust is organic. It grows at the speed of relationship, not the speed of strategy. Even when you’re doing everything right, some people may stay reserved. Some dynamics may remain tense. That’s okay.

Don’t mistake caution for rejection. And don’t mistake slowness for failure. You are planting seeds—through presence, listening, follow-through, and integrity. And like any good gardener, your job is to tend the soil and trust the process. The fruit will come.

Keep showing up. Keep asking questions. Keep telling the truth. Over time, the trust you build will become your most valuable leadership asset—not because you demanded it, but because you earned it.

Final Word: Trust Is the Currency of Leadership

When it’s all said and done, trust is more than just a leadership skill—it’s the very currency that makes leadership work. Without trust, your title carries little weight. Your directives sound hollow. Your vision feels like a sales pitch instead of an invitation. But when trust is present—when people believe that you see them, hear them, and care about them—everything changes. Conversations open up. Resistance softens. Possibility emerges.

But trust is more than just a currency. It’s also culture. It shapes how people treat one another in your presence—and especially in your absence. It determines whether your team takes risks, speaks truth, or plays it safe. Trust builds psychological safety, the secret ingredient of high-performing teams. And it starts with you—how you carry yourself, how you handle failure, how you speak about others when they’re not in the room.

And finally, trust is a catalyst. It doesn’t just create good feelings—it unlocks movement. When people trust their leader, they’re more likely to innovate, collaborate, and stay resilient in the face of challenge. They stop bracing for the next shift and start leaning into it. That’s when real change becomes possible. Not because you forced it—but because you earned the permission to lead people there.

So if you’re in a new role—whether as a permanent leader or in a transitional seat—don’t underestimate the long game. Your greatest impact won’t come from making the right decisions. It will come from being the kind of person others trust to walk with them through uncertainty. And that doesn’t happen overnight.

But day by day, word by word, meeting by meeting, you get to show people who you are.

You get to earn the right to speak into their story.

You get to be the kind of leader who doesn’t just manage tasks, but shapes culture—and leaves people better than you found them.

That’s the kind of leadership that lasts.

That’s the kind of leadership that transforms.

That’s the kind of leadership the world needs more of.

And it starts with trust.