Importance of unstructured time in building trust

Time spent “doing nothing” might be your team’s greatest asset. Think about the chit-chat before meetings, the casual dinner after a conference, or those in-between moments that feel unstructured. To many leaders, it seems like wasted time. But psychology says otherwise. It’s in these moments that teammates share more than just work. They talk about who they are. They discover what psychologists call "uncommon commonalities"—shared interests that connect them, like a love for Arsenal or growing up in the same city. And, those small moments of connection? They spark deeper collaboration, a willingness to help, and even friendships—the foundation of truly engaged teams. The problem? Leaders often cut these moments in the name of efficiency. We skip the chit-chat.We tighten the schedule. But without those bonds, teams lose what makes them great: connection. So, next time you’re bringing your team together—whether in-person or virtual—ask yourself: Are you leaving room for these moments? Because unstructured time isn’t wasted. It’s the foundation of trust, collaboration, and the best teams.

We're racing to make healthcare more efficient - shorter visits, faster throughput, optimized schedules. The goals seem reasonable: serve more patients, reduce costs, improve access. But in this rush toward efficiency, we're inadvertently designing out the moments where healing actually happens. Those 'inefficient' moments - when a nurse lingers to hold a hand, when a doctor sits in silence while a patient processes news, when a family finds support in a quiet corner - aren't wasteful. They're essential. They're where trust builds, where understanding develops, where healing begins. After years studying healthcare delivery, the patterns are clear: The spaces between scheduled care often matter more than the care itself. The unplanned conversations frequently have more impact than the documented ones. The 'waste' in the system often serves a crucial human purpose. As we embrace AI and automation, this tension will only increase. Yet there's a way forward that balances efficiency with humanity. Here's what it looks like: Design for Time Richness Create systems that protect crucial moments - the quiet conversations, the careful explanations, the space for questions. Efficiency shouldn't mean rushing through human connections. Honor Natural Rhythms Healthcare has its own pace - of healing, of understanding, of building trust. Our systems should respect these rhythms rather than forcing everything into standardized timeframes. Enable Real Relationships Build processes that support relationship development between providers and patients. Sometimes continuity matters more than convenience. Support Informal Care Networks Make space for the unofficial support systems that develop naturally in healthcare settings. These aren't inefficiencies - they're essential support structures. Measure What Matters Beyond traditional metrics like throughput and wait times, track relationship strength, trust development, and healing support. What we measure shapes what we value. The implications extend beyond patient experience. Healthcare workers suffer too when forced to sacrifice human connection for efficiency. Burnout often stems not from working too much, but from being unable to care in the ways they know matter most. This isn't about rejecting efficiency altogether. It's about being thoughtful about where efficiency serves care and where it hinders it. Sometimes slower is better. Sometimes inefficiency is valuable. Sometimes the best healthcare experience isn't the most optimized one. As healthcare faces mounting pressure to do more with less, this balance becomes crucial. We can create systems that are both efficient and human. But it requires us to recognize that some of the most valuable moments in healthcare are the ones that don't show up on our metrics. The future of healthcare depends on getting this balance right. Our challenge isn't just to make healthcare more efficient - it's to make it more efficiently human.

Over the next few weeks, I'm going to share an insight per day drawn from the sessions I attended at the recent Aspen Ideas Festival. I think you'll get as much out of them as I did. Today's installment: "The 15-Minute Leadership Rule That Changed Everything," courtesy of Steve Kerr, the Golden State Warriors coach, who was describing a lesson from Phil Jackson that sounds almost too simple to matter: "If you get together every day for 15 minutes, you end up talking and communicating." That's it. Fifteen minutes. No agenda. No PowerPoints. Just consistent human connection. Kerr explained how this practice transformed his understanding of leadership. "We talk a lot now," he said. "I'm more mindful of what makes people tick. The best coaches now have collaboration, mindfulness, and connect on a very deep emotional level—and it's every single day." This reminds me of the research on psychological safety from Harvard's Amy Edmondson. Teams that feel safe to speak up perform better, innovate more, and adapt faster. But safety isn't built through annual retreats or team-building exercises. It's built through daily micro-connections. The 15-minute rule works because: ✔️ Consistency beats intensity in relationship building ✔️ Informal time reveals more than formal meetings ✔️ Daily touchpoints prevent small issues from becoming big problems ✔️ Regular connection builds trust faster than sporadic deep conversations Most leaders I know are drowning in back-to-back meetings. But what if one of those 30-minute blocks became two 15-minute connection sessions instead? I welcome your thoughts. Leave a note below. #Hagerty #leadership #YPO #business #YPO

In discussions about building trust, one issue is consistently missing from the conversation: Time Frequent + Substantive Interactions > Strong Relationships Too often, there is an expectation that trust should be granted - on the spot. When that's the case, space isn't made to build shared understanding and vulnerability. That limits the effectiveness of these relationships - especially when reputations are on the line - in high-stakes work situations. I frequently see newly formed teams break down, miss deadlines, exceed budgets, or fail to achieve the desired project outcomes. Not because there is a lack of will or ability. They lack a basic foundation of trust and shared coordination practices. They leap over the most critical part of forming highly effective workplace relationships, which has become an all too common oversight in distributed organizations. If you want to increase trust within your organization, make sure you are providing frequent and unstructured opportunities for your people to learn about one another.  #trust #empathy #effectiveleadership #effectivecommunication #leadership #leadershipdevelopment #workplacestrategy #workplaceculture #workplacewellbeing