This is the first article in our new three-part Trust series, where we dive into this big fear that small business owners face when growing teams. For the full series read 3 Powerful Ways to Develop Self-trust for Leading a Team, and Building A Team You Can Trust.

It's only Wednesday, yet the topic of trust has already made an appearance several times in my world this week.

Trust has shown up for me in conversations around:

• Why a client has made poor hiring decisions in the past

> She hasn't listened to or trusted her gut instinct

• A key characteristic of leaders who have strong company cultures

> Trust has been a hot topic at an HR conference I'm attending this week

• Business owners who've shared their concerns about making their first hire

> I often hear things like, "What if I make a mistake?"

When something keeps coming up like this for me, I know that there's a reason why. Perhaps it's something I need to pay a little more attention to myself or maybe it's a message I need to share with someone else – like you!

What is trust?

Merriam-Webster defines trust as:

Trust (noun) – Assured reliance on the character, ability, strength, or truth of someone or something; one in which confidence is placed (including ourselves).

It's essential that we develop some level of self-trust as business owners in order to stay motivated, take action, and follow-through.

As we begin to hire and lead a team, it becomes critical that we lean into trusting ourselves even more. If we don't trust ourselves, it will be nearly impossible to trust someone else.

When we lack trust in our team it can lead to serious problems, such as:

• Mistrust among team members

• Failure to share information

• Poor (or lack of) communication

• Higher levels of stress

• Lower levels of productivity

• Leader-dependency

• And much more 

Trust plays a huge role in company culture and isn't something that you should leave to chance. Your culture is something you must cultivate with intention and purpose in order to reap the many rewards it can bring to both you and your employees. And it all begins by learning to trust yourself so you can in turn trust others.

Do you struggle with trusting yourself? If so, leave a comment and let me know what you struggle with most.

Authored by Ashley Cox, PHR, SHRM-CP

Now that you know the Key to Building Trust as a Leader, learn how you can develop greater self-trust in the second article in our three-part Trust series, 3 Powerful Ways to Develop Self-trust for Leading a Team.