When Trust Take a Hit: Tips to Rebuild Alignment
Feb 07, 2026
Here's the hard truth: Alignment doesn’t fall apart overnight—and neither does trust.
It erodes quietly. Through mixed messages. Shifting priorities. Decisions made with good intent but little context. A season of “just get through it” that lasts longer than anyone planned. Sounds like all of 2025 don’t you think? And 2026 has some similar tendencies.
By the time leaders notice misalignment, trust has often already taken a hit. When trust is strained, even the best strategy won’t land. People stop asking questions. They execute, but cautiously. They comply, but they don’t commit.
The good news? Alignment can be rebuilt but not by jumping straight back into planning sessions or new initiatives.
Step One: Acknowledge the Strain (Out Loud)
Leaders often want to fix trust quietly. But trust doesn’t rebuild in silence.
Rebuilding alignment starts with naming what people are already feeling:
- “We’ve asked a lot.”
- “Things shifted faster than we explained.”
- “Some decisions landed harder than we intended.”
This isn’t an apology tour. It’s leadership clarity.
When leaders acknowledge strain, they reduce speculation and speculation is one of the fastest ways misalignment spreads.
Step Two: Reset the “Why” Before the “What”
After trust has been strained, teams don’t need more tasks. They need meaning.
Before asking for renewed effort, leaders must reconnect people to:
- What still matters
- What hasn’t changed
- What is changing—and why
This is where alignment is either restored or lost completely. If people don’t understand the reason behind the work, they’ll protect themselves instead of investing fully.
Clarity here is stabilizing. It tells people, “You’re not guessing anymore.”
Step Three: Shrink the Strategy (Temporarily)
One of the biggest mistakes leaders make after disruption is trying to regain momentum by doing more.
In reality, trust rebuilds faster when strategy gets smaller:
- Fewer priorities
- Clear decision rights
- Shorter time horizons
This isn’t lowering the bar. It’s rebuilding credibility. When leaders say what matters most right now and then honor that focus, teams begin to believe again.
Step Four: Invite Real-Time Course Correction
When trust has been strained, alignment can’t be a one-way broadcast.
Leaders need to create visible permission for feedback:
- “What’s not clear?”
- “Where are we creating friction?”
- “What feels misaligned with what we said mattered?”
And then—this part matters—respond visibly. That means in front of your teams. Not one on one. When you do that and team members talk to one another as they always do, there’s a chance for misinformation to spread. When you address the situation with the whole team, everyone hears it from you at the same time. You get the chance to read the room. Look at their faces, their posture. Try to anticipate the questions they may be thinking without saying. That’s true transparent leadership that leads to rebuilding trust and getting your alignment back in order without needing a chiropractor. Ok, that was a bad mom joke.:)
You don’t have to fix everything. But people need to see that speaking up leads to movement, not consequences like retribution, retaliation or termination.
Step Five: Model the Behavior You’re Asking For
Nothing rebuilds trust faster than consistency.
If leaders say priorities have narrowed, their calendars should reflect it.
If leaders say well-being matters, urgency should match reality not habit.
If leaders say alignment is a shared responsibility, they should ask for help, too.
Alignment isn’t restored through words alone. It’s rebuilt through what people see repeated.
The Quiet Win of Rebuilt Alignment
When alignment returns after strain, something powerful happens teams don’t just perform, they exhale.
They stop bracing.
They stop decoding leadership intent.
They stop feeling like they’re behind before the work even begins.
That’s the real endgame of strategy not perfection but trust strong enough to move together again.
If this series has shown anything, it’s this:
Strategy isn’t hard. What’s hard is leading humans through change without clarity.
When leaders choose alignment especially after trust has been tested, they don’t just rebuild momentum. They rebuild belief.
If you’ve missed any of my previous four blogs on strategy and alignment, you can find them on my website.