Trust is built and maintained by many small actions over time.
Trust is not a matter of technique, tricks, or tools, but of character.
We are trusted because of our way of being, not because of our polished exteriors or our expertly crafted communications.
Here are some thoughts that may be useful to consider as you think about the role of trust in your own life and leadership:
1. “It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it.” –Warren Buffet
2. “We need people in our lives with whom we can be as open as possible. To have real conversation with people may seem like such a simple, obvious suggestion, but it involves courage and risk.” –Thomas Moore
3. “The glue that holds all relationships together–including the relationship between the leader and the led–is trust, and trust is based on integrity.” –Brian Tracy
4. “Trust is like blood pressure. It’s silent, vital to good health, and if abused it can be deadly.”–Frank Sonnenberg, author of Follow Your Conscience
5. “Just trust yourself, then you will know how to live.” –Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
6. “Better to trust the man who is frequently in error than the one who is never in doubt.” –Eric Sevareid
7. “It takes two to do the trust tango–the one who risks (the Trustor) and the one who is trustworthy (the Trustee); each must play their role. –Charles H. Green, The Trusted Advisor
