Do People Trust You?
By leadership author and keynote speaker Ross Shafer
The big news of this month wasn’t just the election of Donald Trump as the new President-Elect but the protests against his election. Were people upset that America didn’t elect its first female president? Was it about Love and Hate? No. Thousands of people, especially young people, protested in (11) US cities because of a lack of trust. These protesters felt betrayed by the system. Remember, on the night of the election, only 34% of voters thought Donald Trump was honest. And it was worse for Hillary Clinton. Only 31% of voters thought she was trustworthy.
When the “public trust” and dishonesty is that low, history has shown us over an over again that a revolt is brewing. Protesters thought Trump was going to immediately separate illegal aliens from their children. Protesters felt betrayed by Clinton because her email scandals made her look shady…and when they found out the DNC secretly undermined the efforts of their beloved Bernie Sanders, they’re trust was crushed. Think about your situation, if 2/3rds of your workforce didn’t trust you, you’d have a mutiny – your customers would revolt! Would you say with your spouse if you only had a 30% chance he or she wouldn’t cheat on you? You’d pack your bags tonight. But let’s talk about what happens when your trust numbers are high. If all you care about is GAINING TRUST and proving consistent integrity, people get closer to you…not revolt. I was lucky enough to interview hall of fame quarterback Roger Staubach for my ARE YOU RELEVANT book. Roger built a multi-billion dollar real estate brokerage company because he was obsessed about being 100% Trustworthy. He didn’t allow the integrity of his business dealings to drop even 1% point. Roger told me, “Clients are constantly looking to see if you will compromise your principles FOR THEM. But if integrity is who you are, you set the boundaries. You build an impeccable reputation your clients can depend upon. Same with out 1,400 employees…If you’re preaching this message, your people want to look at you with respect. And they want to be honest too.”
Can you imagine trying to sustain a company if you said, “Our fried chicken has a 37% chance of NOT giving you Salmonella.” “Come try our Bungee Jump! It will be the thrill of your life and there is a 35% chance you won’t die.” Want to avoid a revolt? Focus on 100% honesty. Want to build a sustainable company? Tell the truth and don’t betray anyone…and if by chance you make a mistake. Own up to it. Make things right…before your dishonest reputation becomes a habit…in which case you’ll become famous…or did I should say Infamous.
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Ross Shafer is the author of (9) popular business books and (14) human resource training films. In a former career Ross won (6) Television Emmy awards for his work as a TV host, writer, and producer. Today, Ross is a sought after keynote speaker and consultant for Fortune 500 companies worldwide.