The Trust Factor, by Stephen Covey Jr.

My dear ex-boss, Antonio González-Barros, has sent me a new excerpt from a book written by Stephen Covey Jr. those that make you think and force you to start the week with good intentions and a desire to improve yourself.

The title of the book is “The Trust Factor”, and the fragment to reflect on is the following:

Most of us tend to think of trust in terms of character: being a good or honest person, or having ethics and integrity. And character is absolutely basic and essential; but as I pointed out in the previous chapter, thinking that trust is based solely on character is a myth.

Trust depends on two things: character and competence. Character includes integrity, motivations, intentions with people. Competence includes capabilities, skills, results, and track record. Both are essential.

(…………………)

Imagine you are in court. You have been called to testify as an expert witness and the prosecution lawyer is trying to convince the jury that you are a credible witness. What will you try to prove?

First of all, that you are a person of integrity: that you are honest and consistent, that you have a reputation for telling the truth and that you would not lie.

Second, that he has good intentions: that he is not trying to deceive or protect anyone, that he has no hidden motives or intentions that could influence his testimony.

Thirdly, that he has excellent references and that he really does have the necessary experience, knowledge, technique and ability in the field in which he has been called to testify.

And fourthly, that it has maintained a good track record, that it has effectively demonstrated its capabilities in other situations in the past, that it obtains results and that there are reasons to believe that it will do so again.

I hope that it will be useful to you as well and that it will help you start the week reflecting on trust, how to transmit it and how to recognize it.

A big hug.