I love receiving unsolicited emails from folks thinking deeply about trust. Yesterday David Heath shared the following and I am excited to pass David’s thoughts along to you.
The Ten Laws of Trust: In much the same way that the Boy Scouts movement maintains ten laws that guide the behaviour of every member, so too might we describe ten laws of Trust. These laws should guide everyone in the pursuit and enjoyment of Trust.
- Trust is congruent. It starts from within. It starts with the simple statement, “I will be trustworthy.” And from there, the desire, nay the imperative, to achieve trustworthiness.
- Trust is reciprocal. If I am Trustworthy, it is reasonable to expect people to trust me in return. Maybe I will get burned, but without the spark of trust, there is nothing.
- Trust is consistent. In any relationship, there is an expectation that people will behave in the same manner as they have done previously. The con-man continues to con, the trusted remains trustworthy.
- Trust is inflationary. In any positive relationship, simply our continued presence will increase the level of trust.
- I will be constructive in my Trust. In any positive relationship, I will actively do things to increase the level of trust; in a negative relationship, I will seek to identify and remove the barriers to trust.
- Trust is expansive. As Trust grows, I will expect more and more positive outcomes from the relationship.
- Trust is individual and unique. A Trust relationship does not require me to agree with everything you say or do. It does however permit me to set our differences aside in the pursuit of common goals.
- Trust is remedial. Whenever mutual Trust is damaged, and it will happen, I will actively seek to repair the relationship.
- Trust is respectful. I understand that others may choose to not Trust me – that is their choice. I will respect their decision and continue to be as trustworthy as I can possibly be towards that person.
- Trust is discriminating. Trust and respect are two quite different things and I will not confuse the two. I will however work hard to align them as closely as I possibly can.
Thank you David for this creative and original perspective on trust. What do you think about David’s “Ten Laws?” Do you have other thoughts about organizational trust? Send them along to barbara@trustacrossamerica.com
David Heath is a New Zealand-born Australian resident who initially pursued Geology and ended up with a Computer Science degree. These days, David writes for a living – predominantly as an Instructional Designer for a major industrial control vendor where as well as writing multi-hundred page technical training manuals, he also delivers a variety of in-company courses including a “Train the Trainer” course. In addition David is Security Editor for an on-line IT news site.
Being an INTJ, David cannot possibly be restricted to a single area of interest and as part of his exploration into improved communication came across the works of Charles Green and Barbara Kimmel in the field of ‘Trust..’ He continues to pose the question, “what makes us trust the trainer?”
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