Today I’m continuing my series on trust. Building trust is your responsibility. No one else can do that for you, and no one can make you trustworthy.
Stephen Covey says, “Trust is the glue of life. It’s the most essential ingredient in effective communication. It’s the foundational principle that holds all relationships.”
As you grow and mature, you will have to walk your path to becoming a trustworthy person.
You build trust through your interactions and experiences. You practice this daily, year after year, and over time people will know you as trustworthy.
As I think about trust I go back to the role model of my parents. My Dad never met a stranger and would take men off the street and give them a place to stay even if a barn was all he had to offer.
My father’s display of trust in humankind is where I learned how to trust.
My parents also taught me the value of trust by trusting me. One of the greatest lessons I learned about trust was when I was 12 years old. My parents had a farmers market stand in Philadelphia selling deli products and baked goods. It was during a time that we were going through challenging financial troubles.
Even though I was only 12 years old, I felt the impact of our family’s troubles and wanted to help. My Dad told me to start making pies for the farmers market, and so I did. I baked sixty to seventy pies every Thursday after I got home from school.
My Dad’s trust in me was one I will never forget. His trust in me helped me believe I can do anything because my Dad thinks I can and trusts me.
As I went out on my own into the real world, I took that experience with me. I took it into my marriage and the world of business many years later.
When I decided to marry Jonas Beiler, I was never more sure that I had met a man I could fully trust. The years we have spent together proved to me I was right. He is a trustworthy man.
When I began the business of Auntie Anne’s, trust became the foundation of our business model.
God is the very foundation of our trust, and to trust Him, we need to know Him. How well do we know God? If you study His character, you’ll discover He is trustworthy.
Trust is something to be cultivated. When you plant seeds of trust, you will reap a harvest of trustworthiness. It is the most valued commodity of the human heart.
Trusting someone means that you believe they are reliable. You have confidence in them, and you feel safe, physically, and emotionally.
Trust and love complement one another. If I truly love you, then I truly trust you.
Being a trusting person means you are consistent and dependable. You are secure. You always speak the truth and communicate clearly.
When someone says – “To tell you the truth” or “I’ll be honest with you,” I question almost everything else the person says after that.
When building relationships, trust is not reckless or rude. Sometimes we fail the test of being trustworthy, but the good news is we can always start again.
My Dad’s trust in me at a young age built a solid foundation of trust, and as a result, my trust in God and others was natural and strong.
