ABSTRACT
Trust is about congruence and alignment. People are more likely to be trusted when their words match their actions. Intuitively, we trust people more when their nonverbal behaviors align with their words. Trust can be seriously broken when our followers discover this lack of alignment. Hypocritical behavior is a huge trust buster. Too often, leaders do not reflect upon their own behaviors and continue to act inconsistently, perhaps out of ignorance or arrogance. Leaders concerned about trust know that they must watch for duplicity and incongruence. These leaders who want to build trust hold themselves to the same standards, or even higher standards, than they expect others to meet. They also surround themselves with individuals who give them information about incongruent behaviors—someone who will be honest with reader if their actions are sending a different message than their words.
