Trust is an essential building block in any relationship. And when you’re talking business, we know it’s even more important. Would you build a relationship with someone you don’t trust? Are you likely to refer business to someone you don’t trust? Consider how important trust is when you’re communicating with those in your network and keep these points in mind to build trust with your network.
- Lead by Example
Make trustworthy choices and show your people that you trust others. This means demonstrating trust in your team, your colleagues, your boss and your business. Never forget that your team members are always watching and taking cues from you – take the opportunity to show them what trust in others really looks like.
- Don’t Place Blame
In your business, honest mistakes and disappointments will happen, and it’s easy to blame someone who causes these. Pointing fingers undermines trust, and reflects worse on you than on the person you’re blaming.
- Communicate Openly
Open communication is essential for building trust. You need to get everyone on your team talking to one another in an honest, meaningful way, and you can use several strategies to accomplish this.
- Get to Know Each Other Personally
Never forget that the person you are talking to is exactly that: a person. Get to know the people in your network on a more personal level. As long as you use your judgement, you can ask about their family, or about their hobbies. Start by sharing some personal information about yourself, and then ask someone else about a hobby, or an interest.
- Follow through.
Every time you follow through on something you say you’ll do, you are conveying reliability and building trust. Conversely, when you don’t do what you say you will, you lose trust. We all recognize that sometimes things come up and we are unable to live up to what we said we would, so if that happens to you, communicate about it. Acknowledge that you didn’t deliver on something and set the intention for moving forward. Honesty builds openness and trust.