The Thin Book of Trust summary

What do we mean by “trust,” when we’re talking about workplace relationships?

For our purposes, trust means that you take a risk willingly. You allow something you value to become potentially vulnerable to someone else’s actions. 

The thing you value might be something concrete, like money or a promotion. Or maybe it’s a bit less tangible, like a value, or a belief. Whatever it is, when you trust someone, you’re willing to accept some level of risk to that valued thing.

This kind of trust is fundamental in the workplace. Trust allows us to share our thoughts more openly, to discuss and debate – even to disagree. We can work together more easily when there’s a foundation of trust.

But in order to truly understand trust – and to learn how to create it – we need to break it down. How do we decide if someone is trustworthy or not? What aspects of their character or behavior are we looking at?

Trust depends on four distinct attributes: care, sincerity, reliability, and competence. When we’re evaluating whether or not to trust someone, we assess each of these four things.

In the following sections, we’ll look at each of the four elements in detail. But for now, what’s important to note is that there are four distinct attributes. What this means is that trust isn’t all-or-nothing. Someone might be highly trustworthy in one area, but less so in another. 

For instance, let’s say someone you work with is untrustworthy in terms of reliability. He tends to miss deadlines, or be absent at key times. However, if you believe that he’s sincere, there’s still some trust. You don’t have to write him off as totally untrustworthy.

So, when we’re thinking about other people’s trustworthiness, we can take a more nuanced approach. But when it comes to our own trustworthiness, ideally, of course, we’d like to be perceived as trustworthy in all areas. 

Let’s explore some practical ways to build and maintain trust, examining each of the four attributes in turn.