Are you unintentionally eroding trust by avoiding hard conversations? Also, what happens to your team when trust goes unexercised?

In episode 253 of At The Table, Patrick Lencioni and Cody Thompson unpack why trust isn’t something to simply build and preserve—it must be used, stretched, and tested to grow stronger. They explore how leaders unintentionally erode trust by avoiding honest curiosity, mistaking it for suspicion.

Topics explored in this episode:

(00:00) Curiosity vs. Suspicion

* How simple questions like “What are you working on?” can build or break trust.

* Why avoiding questions to “protect” trust actually weakens it over time.

(04:59) Trust Isn’t a Museum Piece

* Unused trust is like a car that’s never driven—beautiful but purposeless.

(09:56) Healthy Relationships Aren’t Fragile

* How conflict and tension signal healthy trust, not dysfunction.

* The importance of exercising trust through candid conversations.

(13:28) Trust and Remote Leadership

* How distance and fear of misinterpretation can make trust decay faster.

(17:16) Leaders Must Take the First Risk

* Pat challenges leaders to stop being afraid of awkwardness and exercise trust first.

This episode of At The Table with Patrick Lencioni is brought to you by The Table Group: https://www.tablegroup.com. We teach leaders how to make work more effective and less dysfunctional. We also help their employees be more fulfilled and less miserable.

At The Table is a podcast that lives at the connection between work life, leadership, organizational health, and culture. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts (https://apple.co/4hJKKSL), Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/6NWAZzkzl4ljxX7S2xkHvu), and YouTube (https://bit.ly/At-The-Table-YouTube).

Follow Pat Lencioni on https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrick-lencioni-orghealth, http://www.youtube.com/@PatrickLencioniOfficial, and https://x.com/patricklencioni.

Be sure to check out our other podcast, The Working Genius Podcast with Patrick Lencioni, on Apple Podcasts (https://apple.co/4iNz6Yn), Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/3raC053GF5mtkq6Y1klpRU), and YouTube (https://bit.ly/Working-Genius-YouTube).

Let us know your feedback via podcast@tablegroup.com.

This episode was produced by Story On Media: https://www.storyon.co.

What happens to a culture when leaders ignore problems?

In episode 252 of At The Table, Patrick and Cody explore the leadership principle of running toward the fire. They discuss why leaders often ignore the “smoke” of personnel or cultural issues, hoping problems will resolve themselves. Instead, they argue that credibility, trust, and organizational health are built when leaders courageously confront issues before they spread.

Topics explored in this episode:

00:35 – Seeing Smoke

* Leaders set the tone by how they respond to problems.

03:33 – Defining the Fire

* Personnel problems are the most commonly ignored fires in organizations.

06:03 – Why Leaders Avoid the Fire

* Confrontation feels messy and uncomfortable, especially when emotions are involved.

09:45 – The Cost of Avoidance

* Ignoring smoke damages credibility, weakens leadership muscle, and sets a bad cultural example.

12:20 – Regaining Credibility

* Leaders can only rebuild trust through visible action, not promises.

This episode of At The Table with Patrick Lencioni is brought to you by The Table Group: https://www.tablegroup.com. We teach leaders how to make work more effective and less dysfunctional. We also help their employees be more fulfilled and less miserable.

At The Table is a podcast that lives at the connection between work life, leadership, organizational health, and culture. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts (https://apple.co/4hJKKSL), Spotify (https://spoti.fi/4l1aop0), and YouTube (https://bit.ly/At-The-Table-YouTube).

Follow Pat Lencioni on https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrick-lencioni-orghealth, http://www.youtube.com/@PatrickLencioniOfficial, and https://x.com/patricklencioni.

Be sure to check out our other podcast, The Working Genius Podcast with Patrick Lencioni, on Apple Podcasts (https://apple.co/4iNz6Yn), Spotify (https://spoti.fi/4iGGm8u), and YouTube (https://bit.ly/Working-Genius-YouTube).

Let us know your feedback via podcast@tablegroup.com.

This episode was produced by Story On Media: https://www.storyon.co.

In what ways can the formula for change be useful for understanding both personal and organizational change?

In episode 251 of At The Table, Patrick and Cody explore the so-called change equation, a simple yet powerful formula that explains why some change efforts succeed while others stall. Breaking it down into dissatisfaction, vision, and a first simple step—multiplied together—they show how these elements must outweigh resistance for change to occur.

Topics explored in this episode:

0:55 – The Change Equation

3:17 – D: Dissatisfaction with the Current State

* How leaders and individuals can identify and amplify dissatisfaction.

4:38 – V: Vision for a Better Future

* The importance of painting a clear and compelling future state.

6:52 – F: The First Simple Step

* Why a small, achievable action builds momentum and reduces overwhelm.

17:59 – R: Resistance to Change

* How fear, comfort, and uncertainty fuel resistance.

Here are some additional notes that relate to the equation explored in this episode:

D × V × F > R.

D = Dissatisfaction with how things are now.

V = Vision of what is possible.

F = First concrete steps that can be taken towards the vision.

If the product of these three factors is greater than R = Resistance, then change is possible. Because D, V, and F are multiplied, if any one is absent (zero) or low, then the product will be zero or low and therefore not capable of overcoming the resistance.

This episode of At The Table with Patrick Lencioni is brought to you by The Table Group: https://www.tablegroup.com. We teach leaders how to make work more effective and less dysfunctional. We also help their employees be more fulfilled and less miserable.

At The Table is a podcast that lives at the connection between work life, leadership, organizational health, and culture. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts (https://apple.co/4hJKKSL), Spotify (https://spoti.fi/4l1aop0), and YouTube (https://bit.ly/At-The-Table-YouTube).

Follow Pat Lencioni on https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrick-lencioni-orghealth, http://www.youtube.com/@PatrickLencioniOfficial, and https://x.com/patricklencioni.

Be sure to check out our other podcast, The Working Genius Podcast with Patrick Lencioni, on Apple Podcasts (https://apple.co/4iNz6Yn), Spotify (https://spoti.fi/4iGGm8u), and YouTube (https://bit.ly/Working-Genius-YouTube).

Let us know your feedback via podcast@tablegroup.com.

This episode was produced by Story On Media: https://www.storyon.co.