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40 seconds: Earning trust

picture credit: geekstinkbreath

picture credit: geekstinkbreath

Should trust be earned – or assumed until disproved?

Should we always automatically think the best of people and organizations until something happens to make us question our trust?

Or do we need to spend more time on personal due diligence and take more care before dispensing our valuable trust?

Of course these questions usually only apply when we have to make a judgement with no prior personal knowledge to influence the basis of trust – the experiences of others may be influential but not always conclusive.

We make our own choices and trust [sic] that we will not be disappointed.

Reflecting on the outcomes of our trust decisions is an important function of our personal and professional development, because trust is the sine qua non of every effective relationship.

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  • http://www.p-advantage.com Dr Bruce Hoag

    We all make value judgments as soon as we meet someone. It is well known in academic circles, for example, that the decision on whether or not to hire someone who attends an interview is made within 30 seconds of the beginning of that interview; which is one reason why this method of selection is so unreliable.

    Different cultures view strangers differently. Americans tend to trust everyone until proven otherwise, often to their cost in non-Western cultures. Europeans are more cautious; Asians even more so. I read people pretty well and know almost instinctively whether I can trust them.

    We’re all different, and so it would be a mistake to make a blanket judgment about everyone.

    Cheers,

    Dr Bruce Hoag
    Organizational Psychologist
    http://www.p-advantage.com