Seeking feedback from your employees requires both humility and recognizing your own room for growth, your motives are also equally as important. For example, do you really want to be great at what you do, or do you want to be seen as great? That distinction is important because it requires the willingness to give up the illusion of positional power in exchange for the ability to be aware of areas of needed growth.
If you truly want to be a strong leader, helping others increase their influence is the best way to get there; however, this also requires you to being open to their influence. You may not always like what you hear, but if you listen closely, resist any tendency to become defensive, and ask simple clarifying questions you will gain valuable insights and the opportunity to grow.
To gain more trust, you must engage your team to find out what you can do to contribute more effectively or to lead them better. Start by creating a platform where they can be honest with you, and let them know how valuable their constructive feedback is to you. Make it a safe and routine process, and ask them in advance to help you focus on specific areas of growth opportunity whenever possible. When you both know the direction the conversation will go, you get fewer surprises and more results!
Read here about How to Receive Feedback with Grace.
