Journal
1932 L Thu 3 Jan 2002
I have been thinking about trust today. From the Oxford Concise Australian Dictionary we have:
trust
1a a firm belief in the reliability or truth or strength etc. of a person or thing.
b the state of being relied on.
2 a confident expectation. ...
Tony Page talks about it in Diary of a Change Agent (1996), when he reflects on a balloon ride:
Value through trusting
I realized that my trust in the pilot was implicit. It arose from a range of factors including Helen's confidence to make the booking, the look of the equipment, the ease with which the pilot unpacked the balloon and inflated it, his small actions and his facial expression. There was nothing at all that cast doubt on his ability. It is difficult for a facilitator or consultant to be so self-assured. Our task is more complex. ...
A book that deals explicitly with the topic is The Trusted Advisor by Maister, Green and Galford (2000). I bought it about a year ago. It has lots of lists. The first is about the benefits of trust. The second list is 22 Common Traits of Trusted Advisors. Here are a few:
1. Seem to understand us, effortlessly, and like us
5. Help us think things through (it's our decision)
19. Are always honorable (they don't gossip about others, and we trust their values)
The dictionary definition for faith is built on trust:
faith 1 complete trust or confidence.
2 firm belief, esp. without logical proof.
3a a system of religious belief (the Christian faith) ...
A change in the movie The Lord of the Rings is the role of the hobbits. Here some dialogue from the book:
Sam: he said no! take someone as you can trust.
Frodo: But it does not seem that I can trust anyone.
Merry: It all depends on what you want. You can trust us to stick to you through thick and thin -- to the bitter end. And you can trust us to keep any secret of yours -- closer than you keep it yourself. But you cannot trust us to let you face trouble alone, and go off without a word. ...
Copyright J.R. Lilburne 3 January 2002.
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