Trust

Once there was an Army sergeant and a private who were doing survival training in the Rocky Mountains.  As they made their way through the woods, suddenly they encountered a really big, really angry, grizzly bear.  The bear was focused on attacking them!  Quickly the sergeant sat down, ripped off his heavy hiking boots, removed some running shoes from his backpack and put them on, as he was hurriedly lacing them up, the private stood there watching.  "Excuse me, sir," he said.  "Do you really think you're going to be able to out run that bear?"  "Well, private, I don't have to out run the bear," replied the sergeant."  "I only have to out run you."

If there had ever been any trust in that relationship it was gone in an instant!  Trust is critical in relationships.  Employee and employer relationships require it.  Husband and wife relationships are built on it.  Parent and child relationships strive for it.  Trust is a foundational element of successful relationships.

Trust is earned through patient investment and long association in a relationship. However, it can be destroyed in an instant.  We destroy trust in all sorts of ways...

·         By not doing what we said we would do

·         By not saying what's really on our minds

·         By asking for input when it's obvious we've already made up our minds

·         By making up an answer rather than admitting that we don't know

·         By allowing our actions to be inconsistent with our words

Don’t destroy the trust you have established, it is difficult to re-build; strive to develop trust that you may not have yet attained, it is key in relationships.  Trust is what other people invest in you, based on your integrity.  Trust is their absolute confidence that you are truthful and reliable.