January's Challenge...Trust...Risk...

Trust:  Firm belief in the reliability, truth, ability, or strength of someone or something. 

That’s the definition I found with a quick Google search.  However, I’m of the opinion that trust can be viewed quite differently by each individual based on their upbringing and past experiences.  So let you give you my take…trust equals risk. 

Risk:  A situation involving exposure to danger.

Yes, I believe that trust is risk.  Risk can scare many people away from offering trust...espicially if that person has had a bad experience in the past.  But remember this, if you refuse to take a risk how can you ever know what you’re missing out on?  Of course I’m not saying you should just throw caution to the wind and take everyone or everything at face value.  But I’ve personally taken some risks with individuals and ended up with not only trusted associates but friends.  Of course I’ve also been burned and chalked it up to another life lesson…more than once.

I also believe you have to be trusted in order to offer trust.  Does that make sense?  Ask yourself this…are you credible…can you be truthful?  Are you reliable…can others depend on you?  Are you intimate…can you listen to others and understand their needs?  Those three traits are the backbone of trust in my mind.  If you answered yes to the three questions you know what it takes to be trusted…and you have a good foundation to use as far as who you can trust.

My inspection business is built around trust.  I believe that I’ve earned the trust of every client I’ve worked with.  It is a strange business in that a majority of my clients do not meet me face to face until I pull into the driveway to conduct an inspection.  However, my clients have already established some form of trust in me at that point, and they expect me to do a complete and thorough inspection of their property.  I understand that trust is a very fragile trait and if it’s lost…I may never be able to recover it.  Word of mouth and referrals are a huge part of my business.  So my clients trust in me is essential and MUST be my number one goal.

As a kid my parents always told me to “just do what you said you were going to do and everything will be fine”.  So...that’s what I’m doing…seems to be working out pretty good!

This post is a submission to the ActiveRain / Adobe EchoSign Trust Contest. I could possibly win a prize. You can find out about the contest by clicking here