Trust and respect do not come automatically just because you’ve been given a title or own the business. You must earn both – one person at a time. Establishing trust with the people you work with and interact with is a 3-step process that you must go through when meeting someone for the very first time. Some will go through this process easier than others, while others will have to work at it. Why establish trust? Because sometimes you need others to take you at your word. They will be more inclined to do that if they trust you. They will trust you if they believe that you have their best interest in mind. Walter Winston may have given us the best reason why establishing trust is so important when he said – “In organizations where people trust and believe in each other, they don’t get into regulating and coercing behaviours. They don’t need a policy for every mistake … people in these trusting environments respond with enormous commitment and creativity”.

Establishing trust with the people you work with and interact with is a 3-step process, often referred to as the 3 R’s. – Rapport, Relationship and Respect.

Worth Remembering … You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you. – Dale Carnegie. 

Rapport: If you want people to be interested in you-you must be interested in them. Get to know the person for more than the job they do. Get to know them on a personal level. Find out what they like to do outside of work. Do they have a hobby? Are they married, do they have children? What do they like to do for fun? To establish rapport you need to show genuine interest in them. You need to be able to carry on a conversation about them.  You stand little chance of developing a relationship without first establishing rapport.

Worth Remembering … What is uttered from the heart alone, will win the hearts of others to your own. – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe 

Relationship:  Once you have established a rapport you are ready to take the next step in establishing mutual respect. People quit managers they don’t quit companies. How much fun are you to be around? People like to work with and hang around with people they like. Friends don’t like to let their friends down. If you have built your relationship on a solid foundation by creating a friendly environment to work in then people will want to perform well for you.

Worth Remembering … They may forget what you said, but they will never forget how you made them feel. – Carl W. Buechner 

Respect: The final step in establishing trust is respect. You will never respect anyone that you haven’t developed a relationship with first. How often have you heard someone say that they didn’t agree with what was said but they respected the fact that they had a right to express their opinion? People who respect one another can agree to disagree and move on. If I respect you – I will trust you even if I don’t agree with you.

Worth Remembering … I’m not upset that you lied to me, I’m upset that from now on I can’t believe you. – Friedrich Nietzsche 

If you have navigated the three-step process successfully you will be able to establish trust in your relationships based on mutual respect. You never trust anyone you don’t respect first. Trust is important because sometimes you need others to take a leap of faith. Establishing trust is important because sometimes you need people to follow you even when you don’t have all the answers. They will if they trust you. They will trust you if they believe you have their best interest in mind. Without trust you can’t lead.

Copyright (c) 2018. Brian Smith – Reformed Control Freak. Not to be reproduced without permission. Are you looking for a Professional Speaker or Seminar Leader who can inform and entertain on a variety of soft-skills topics? Give Brian a call – he will work with you one-on-one to ensure your event is an overwhelming success. To find out more about Brian and what he can do for you visit http://briansmithpld.com