It’s easy to say, “Well, we do want more trust around here, but you go first. The last time I trusted somebody, they stabbed me in the back.”
If we don’t eliminate the fear of what’s going to happen when we trust somebody, we’re going to create a culture where it’s dangerous to trust and dangerous to ask for help.
Trust is one of the things that we all want more of. We desperately want it, but we’re afraid something’s going to happen. And then what do we start doing? We start using our degree from MSU. We “make stuff up.”
Sometimes, we do an MSU that piles up so fast, it can make your head spin! Here’s a classic way Making Stuff Up can accelerate:
If I trust somebody, they’re going to let me down.
If they let me down, then I’m going to look bad.
If I look bad, I’m going to get a bad review.
If I get a bad review, I’m going to lose my job.
If I lose my job, I’m not going to be able to make my house payment.
If I don’t make my house payment, I’m out in the street.
If I’m out in the street, I don’t eat.
If I don’t eat, I’m going to die.
And it’s all because I trusted somebody.
So stop making stuff up! Take a risk, then do it again and again and again. Make deposits in that trust account there and keep trying. Then you will begin to win people over. There are some people you shouldn’t trust, but that’s OK. You probably don’t want to work too closely with them anyway. But here’s the key. You need to trust each other and you need to take a risk and ask for help.