TRUST doesn’t get enough attention as a strategy to build incredible personal and professional lives. This month we are focused on Mission/Vision/Principles – and another one of my guiding principles is to develop relationships that are centered around deep trust.
Whenever I hire someone, it is their ability to instill trust that is ultimately the deciding factor. Trust is one of the most important things to develop with people, your family, your friends, your colleagues, employees and bosses, your investors, and anyone you serve or lead.
Trust is also misunderstood sometimes.
I’ve recruited, hired, trained and coached hundreds of salespeople and leaders in my career. 98% of the time I would require two to three meetings before I would hire someone; to first focus on character and connection, and the second/third to determine their level of competency and credibility.
These are the components of trust:
Connection: Do we have each other’s interests at heart?
Character: Will each of us do the right thing even when no one is looking?
With family and friends, the connection and character components are often the full deal. However, in professional relationships, there is one more crucial piece:
Competency: Are we each qualified to fulfill our end of the agreement/relationship well?
This is why newer (usually) and sometimes experienced salespeople are shocked when a friend or family member doesn’t engage in their services. In my work with real estate and finance professionals, it is generally not a character concern, but more of a competency issue because of the newness to the profession.
So, we need a strategy to not only reinforce our strong character with people but to also strengthen and communicate our core competencies to gain the trust advantage.
Here are a few business-building thoughts on the matter for salespeople/influencers and leaders at all levels:
Character and connection:
- Ask great questions of others. Listen. Care about the answers. Ask follow-up questions. Care about those answers too.
- Be of service to others and your community. Even when no one is looking.
- Do the right thing. Even when no one is looking.
- Do what you say you will do.
- Respect others’ time and be on time.
- Don’t talk about others who aren’t present unless it is positive and supportive.
Competency and credibility:
- Invest in your education and personal growth.
- Study your craft (every day) and stay relevant.
- Focus on adding value to others.
- Build a team to support your strengths and augment your areas of need.
- Communicate to your audience/prospects/team in a meaningful way.
- Highlight your success stories in a way that adds value to the audience.
- Do the right work and make progress a daily endeavor.
How would you rate yourself on each of these?
If you have TRUST with people, everything gets easier. Think about the last time you bought a car, hired a contractor, or sold a home. If you trust the person providing the product or service, it is easier, more enjoyable, and faster. If not, it can be painful and take a long time to make a decision. Because it is so powerful, it takes a long time to build it, and mere seconds to lose it. Let’s all make it our mission to build and keep trust in our relationships. It’s amazing what we can accomplish together!
Check out our webinar Getting Clear On Your MVP (Mission/Vision/Principles)
For a deeper dive into the subject, one powerful read/listen is Stephen M.R Covey’s, The Speed of Trust.