Trust Battery

A simple concept to help you think about trust. So, you work with people? Do you trust that person? Is that person trust you?

So, you work with people? Do you trust that person? Is that person trust you?

Shopify CEO Tobi Lutke shared this idea about Trust Battery.

Trust is not an on/off thing. It's actually like a battery. It fills up or down as you interact with people. Tweet this

When you first work with someone in a company, your trust battery will start, let's say, at 50%. You have a meeting, brainstorm together about the problem, or debate about something. Over time, you feel like you can work well with this person. Your trust battery charges up.

When I was first introduced to this concept, I can make a mental note, "Oh, my trust battery is 20% with Penny. Gotta fix it."

That's how you can think of Trust Battery between individuals. But you can expand this: Trust battery between functions.

In building products, collaboration is essential. Therefore, you are responsible for charging the trust battery with the other function—marketing, engineering, operational team... You get the idea.

This concept has become even more important in my current role as a product manager. Because I need to lead the team without authority. So, I work with people based on trust. "Great, I think the trust battery with the data team is healthy."

In building products, designers and product managers are responsible to charge the trust battery with the other function. It improves collaboration, motivation, and team dynamics. Tweet this

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