Credibility Through Competence, Caring, and Character

The assignment is about writing an inspirational essay on a unique individual who has demonstrated competence, caring, and character. The individual should be someone with whom you have worked or interacted significantly. The essay should describe specific behaviors that reflect positively or negatively on each of the three C's. The goal is to assess how these factors contribute to building trust and credibility.

You are an Inspiration Essay Assignment: Competence +
Caring + Character = Credibility
Overview: Given the post trust era credibility is more important than
ever. To be seen as a credible person people need to trust you. To
establish yourself as trustworthy you need to demonstrate the three
C’s described in your textbook: Competence, Caring and Character.
Directions: Your job now is to identify a single unique
individual for whom you have worked for or with that was either a
wonderful inspiration to you.
You should try to choose a person that you spent a fairly significant
amount of time working with or for, so that you had enough time to get
to know them and observe their behavior.
Examples you can think of might include a manager you had in a retail
job, a supervisor that you worked for during a special project, a mentor
that you had during your education, or a teacher or professor that you
took a class from among many others. I prefer that you do not use a
close friend or family member for this activity. You may use a
classmate or peer if you have never held a job.
Content of Essay:You are to type a 1-2 page single-spaced essay
which describes specific behaviors that your former boss/teacher/etc
engaged in. Choose behaviors that reflect either poorly or positively
on each of the three C’s: Competence, Caring and Character. Even
though the purpose of the assignment is to identify an inspirational
person, you might likely see that the subject of your essay has
strengths and weaknesses on one or more of the C's.
For example, you might choose a professor from the UWT and describe
the level of competence as quite high and you would explain that
through their understanding of the content of their course and ability
to understand and explain the information. You would provide specific
examples of how you knew that they were or were not competent.
Next you would examine the same person for the dimension of
“caring”. Did this person demonstrate caring to you or to others?
What behaviors did they show that led you to believe that they were or
were not caring? Do they appear to be motivated to help you, or
others?
Lastly, you will conduct the same type of analysis on the person’s
“character”. What evidence do you have to suggest the level of
character the person exhibits? Consider how honest or ethical their
behaviors are. Are they forthcoming, open and transparent with their
communication style? How do they handle confidentiality? Do they

appear to be driven by personal values? Do they adhere to
organizational values? Your values?
Reflection: As a conclusion, you are to reflect upon the overall mix of
the three C’s.
How did your assessment of each factor affect your level of trust
towards this individual? How much credibility would you give this
person?
Consider the level of importance you put on each of these factors
personally. For example, do you find that you put a great deal of
emphasis on “Competence” when assigning trust to another person?
Or, do you conversely consider character to be what makes you more
willing to assign credibility and trust to this person? Of the three C’s
which are you most willing to allow a deficit in?