“The goal of business should not be to do business with anyone who simply wants what you have. It should be to focus on the people who believe what you believe. When we are selective about doing business only with those who believe in our why, trust emerges.”

Simon Sinek

Trust is a complex notion.

If you do not trust someone are you questioning their honesty and integrity or their capability?

Or both?

Trust is a cornerstone of all interpersonal relationships and is critical to building and sustaining long-term and meaningful relationships.

Much of our business development work involves driving sales and marketing messages through the “brand” and many clients continue to search for “mission, vision and value” statements to help guide both staff and customers.

The trouble with most brand values is that they usually only make it as far as wall mounted text in reception areas.

For relationships to thrive, there needs to be hard and fast evidence of these “shared values.”

In business that means bringing those values to life through attitude, action and behaviour.

Visibility or social proof of these values in action is now more important than ever and establishing credibility early in any relationship is as important as establishing rapport.

Credibility comes through high levels of competency but it can be hard to sustain.

A challenge facing small businesses is how do you stretch yourself and at the same time keep to the same levels of quality or service?

In the business world you are always accountable one way or another – trust is hard earned and even harder to sustain.

In seminars and coaching sessions, I often use the example of a “Guide Dog” when talking about the importance of trust.

It is remarkable to watch a human place their entire existence at the mercy of another species.

That’s one highly trained, skilled, competent, confident and very accountable canine.