This is the final of four posts discussing David Horsager’s book ”The Trust Edge.” How Top Leaders Gain Faster Results, Deeper Relationships, and a stronger Bottom Line.
The basic premise of the book is that when we build trust, we gain a competitive advantage in the world we live in. I believe that this applies to both our personal and professional lives. Simply put, when we build trust, we build relationships. And as we all know, people want to spend time with, associate with and do business with people they trust.
The heart of the book focuses on Horsager’s Eight Pillars of Trust – Clarity, Compassion, Character, Competency, Commitment, Connection, Contribution and Consistency.
In this post, we will discuss how to keep the edge.
EXTENDING TRUST
People usually aspire to what is expected of them. This is huge, when you trust someone and they feel trusted, their performance usually reflects that. If you expect little, expect little in return. Horsager puts it this way “Where there is lack of trust, everything costs more, takes more time, and creates more hassles.” When you extend trust to others, the result is much more likely to be better performance and productivity.
REBUILDING TRUST
As hard as we try, eventually something will happen that will impact the level of trust between individuals or businesses and sometimes both. It’s going to happen. None of us are perfect and what happens after we lose trust will determine whether the relationship can be salvaged or not. Horsager sums it up by stating “Without trust, there is no basis for relationship.” If you value the relationship, act immediate and intentional to make it right. It’s not about who is at fault, it’s about who is willing to own it and fix it.
GLOBALIZATION AND TRUST
Building trust on a global scale brings a whole new group of challenges. Culture, language as well as the obvious geographical challenges. The focus needs to remain with the relationship. Horsager points out that “In building trust globally, we must magnify the pillars of trust.” Certainly with global relationships there is the potential for greater reward. With that reward comes risk. If you value the relationship, you better make sure you value the people in it.
TRUST IN THE ONLINE AGE
Horsager makes the point that “In the online age, reputation moves at the speed of light.” Communication today is, in most cases, instant. The ability to do business online has made almost any type of business transaction immediate. As much as this is a good thing, it has also created the chance for immediate failure. The best advice … keep watch on what is going on. If a problem occurs and is not addressed immediately, your trust will decline just as fast.
A SHARP AND LASTING EDGE
Horsager closes out the book discussing the idea of an environment of trust. He shares the following quote from an employee of an organization he was working with. “Our leadership has high expectations, but they really care about the team, give us every resource we need to do our jobs, and celebrate our accomplishments.” The leaders of the organization clearly understand that trusting their people is the way to get results.
In both the business world and in our personal lives, we deal with trust issues every day. If you want to succeed in either you need The Trust Edge. What will you do today to gain that Edge?
See Part 1 of The Trust Edge by clicking here.
See Part 2 of The Trust Edge by clicking here.
See Part 3 of The Trust Edge by clicking here.
Find out more about David Horsager and The Trust Edge at:
www.TheTrustEdge.com or www.davidhorsager.com
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UP NEXT: A 4 week series on “To Sell Is Human” The surprising truth about moving others by Daniel H. Pink
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Barry Smith www.buildingwhatmatters.com 2/13/13 photo courtesy of Amazon
