Who is the leader or manager that you would follow anywhere? What was it about them that inspired that level of loyalty and commitment in you?

In our workshops and coaching we keep it simple. We draw upon "what worked for you?" There will be different answers to the above questions, but we believe that there will be a few common themes: "they believed in me," "they trusted me," "they gave me opportunity," "they invested in me," etc. As on our home page, our PBI mantra is:

We also like the simple chart that comes from Dr. Stephen M. R. Covey:

One needs to give trust to get trust. In getting "return trust," people will evaluate our Character (what’s our integrity and intent) as well as our Competence (capabilities and track record on delivering results). Note that this trust section can apply looking "up the chain" as well as "down" to your staff/direct reports.