How to Know When to Trust: The Power of Intuition in Leading

Editor’s Note: In this insight-packed conversation, Ebisan Akisanya, Chairman of the WIMBIZ Board of Trustees, reframes the idea of trust in leadership. She challenges the notion that trusting your gut means acting instinctively or rushing decisions. Instead, she explains how trust is built deliberately, through openness balanced with hesitation, consistent behaviour, self-trust, and cultural awareness. How can leaders pause, discern, and strengthen relationships across teams and cultures? Read her key takeaways here.

Trusting your intuition in leading is often misunderstood as acting quickly or instinctively. But in a world shaped by uncertainty, difference, and complexity, the more valuable skill may be knowing when to pause. In this re-recorded conversation, trust is reframed not as blind openness or instant confidence, but as something built through discernment, consistency, and self-trust. Ebisan Akisanya, Chairman, WIMBIZ Board of Trustees, invites us to look more closely at how trust actually forms between people. Not through certainty, but through openness balanced with hesitation. Not through charisma, but through integrity over time. And not without learning to trust ourselves first. At the heart of the episode sits a subtle but powerful idea: hesitation is not a lack of trust — it is often wisdom speaking. 

Should We Rely on Intuition While Leading?  

Trusting your gut in leading does not mean rushing headfirst into relationships or decisions. As Ebisan explains, when she meets people, she does not begin with trust — she begins with openness. Openness that allows connection, curiosity, and engagement, but not at the cost of discernment. Hesitation, in this framing, becomes a signal rather than a weakness. It is the gut saying: pause, ask another question, understand more. Especially for leaders, trusting your gut in leading often means slowing down, not speeding up. Blind trust is just as dangerous as chronic distrust. A leader who trusts everyone indiscriminately lacks discernment, and discernment is a critical capability when responsibility and power are involved. Trust is built in layers, and those layers reveal themselves only over time. 

How to build trust and credibility as a leader 

Trust may not look the same everywhere, but Ebisan is clear that it is a fundamental human requirement. Every culture, organisation, and relationship depends on trust — even though the signals of respect, credibility, and trustworthiness vary. In some contexts, trust is built through directness. In others, through time spent together, shared meals, or relationship-building before any transaction begins. Misreading these signals can easily lead to mistrust, not because trust is absent, but because its expression has been misunderstood. For leaders working across cultures and difference, trusting your gut in leading must therefore be accompanied by cultural awareness. Trust grows when leaders recognise that what feels inefficient or unfamiliar to them may be essential for someone else to feel safe, seen, and respected. 

What Ebisan Leaves You Thinking About 

Here are some grounded insights from the conversation on trusting your gut in leading: 

1. Start with openness, not blind trust 
Openness allows connection, but trust must be earned. Trusting your gut in leading often means staying open while watching behaviour unfold over time. 

2. Treat hesitation as information 
Hesitation is not negativity. It is often your gut signalling the need to pause, ask more questions, or gather more information before moving forward. 

3. Look for consistency and accountability 
Trust deepens when people remain consistent, take responsibility, respect boundaries, and do not shift blame. Character reveals itself in small, repeated actions. 

4. Trust yourself before trusting others 
If you don’t trust your own instincts, you are more likely to override warning signs. Many trust failures happen not because instincts were wrong, but because they were ignored. 

5. Question whether instinct is insight or bias 
Not every gut feeling is wisdom. Some instincts are shaped by prejudice or inherited bias. Trusting your gut in leading requires self-questioning: Is this a signal — or a prejudgement? 

Trust is not a switch you flip. It is something you allow, test, recalibrate, and deepen over time. Trusting your gut in leading is not about certainty — it is about discernment, integrity, and the courage to pause when something feels off. To explore these ideas more deeply, listen to the full conversation with Ebisan Akisanya on the podcast, where she unpacks how openness, hesitation, and self-trust shape the way leaders build relationships that last — across cultures, teams, and power dynamics. e in. 

About the Author

Kavya Misra is a writer and producer with a background in adfilms and digital content management. Her master’s in English literature forms the foundation for all her creative and corporate projects.  In addition to this, Kavya has an extensive background in theatre. She has written and produced plays. She has also performed at festivals like Bharat Rang Mahotsav by National School of Drama and International Theatre Festival of Kerala. Her diverse experience across theatre, media and digital content reflects her passion for storytelling and production.