Want to Build Credibility? Sustain Hope.

http://successcomgroup.com/build-credibility-sustain-hope/

As public relations professionals, our currency is credibility. Without it, there can be no communication, engagement, or persuasion.

And thanks to political bickering and Wall Street scandals, credibility is at a premium. Those leaders and organizations rising above the fray are those able to sustain hope and demonstrate a genuine belief in the capacity of others. People will seek out those who lift our spirits and restore a belief in humanity. Naysayers and finger-pointers may capture media attention and ruffle feathers, but they generally  don’t rise to become true leaders.

Ask yourself who are the individuals and brands that have a positive, confident, can-do approach to life and business, and who are the pessimists, doubters and detractors. Which of these do you wish to follow? Who has true credibility?

Noted leadership experts and authors James Kouzes and Barry Posner offer some of the best research on this topic and in their book Credibility explain “credible leaders sustain hope by painting positive images of the future. They arouse optimistic feelings and enable their constituents to hold positive thoughts about the possibilities of success.”

Kouzes and Posner note that those who sustain hope have a strong will to succeed and a desire to be different; they acknowledge reality and see change as an opportunity. They are proactive, have courage, act boldly, enjoy life, inspire people to see positive images of the future, reflect optimism, and give love and encouragement.  Successful brands own many of those same characteristics.

Have hope … and you too can build credibility.