Credibility: How Leaders Gain and Lose It: Why People Demand it
by James M. Kouzes, Barry Z. Posner
Regain Credibility Lost
Despite everyone's best intentions, despite the pursuit of flawless leadership, and despite efforts to be open and humble, things don't always go as planned, expected, or promised. Sometimes circumstances change, and you can no longer do what you said you would do. Sometimes you realize, probably belatedly, that you don't have the competence or resources to do what you said. Sometimes you and others make errors in judgment or choose the wrong strategies. Sometimes you just mess up. No human being is exempt from failure. The trouble is that leadership failures and human frailties can sometimes seriously damage your credibility. So it's important to understand what you can do to regain credibility if ever you should tarnish ...