THE 3 DIMENSIONS OF TRUST

You may have noticed that I’m big on the concept of trust. I’ve touched on it in previous newsletters and many in-depth blog posts, and there’s even a brief on the subject over on Ninety’s website. Trust is deeply important, not only to founders and businesses but to societies and our interpersonal relationships. At a macro level, trust is essential for a healthy economy and happy workers. At a micro level, it’s vital for open communication and daily interactions with the people in our lives.

But what does it actually mean to trust someone? Over the years, I’ve come to believe there are several dimensions associated with trust. But for the sake of simplicity, we can break it down into three primary dimensions: competency, character, and connection.

Read more in Trust Part 2: What Is Trust?

Here’s a high-level look at each of these dimensions:

Competency-based trust is about believing that others are capable of doing the things we rely on them for. This stems from the Neolithic period when people began to divide and conquer by performing different tasks in their emerging communities.

Character-based trust comes from integrity and intentions. It’s the ability to trust the other person’s intentions and, more specifically, the ability to gauge whether those intentions conflict or align with your own.

Connection-based trust is all about the non-competency, non-character things that keep us connected in a healthy way. These things act as a bridge that makes the other two forms of trust relevant.

PERSPECTIVES

“The glue that holds all relationships together — including the relationship between the leader and the led — is trust, and trust is based on integrity.”
— Brian Tracy

“He who does not trust enough will not be trusted.” ― Lao Tzu

MARK MY WORDS

It’s very important to not only understand that there are three dimensions of trust but also keep in mind that competency is “earned,” character is “lost,” and connection is “developed” (check out the linked blog for more on this). 

By viewing trust through the lens of these three dimensions, we can better determine how and where trust is either present or absent in our organizations. 

Maybe you trust a vendor’s character but not their competency. Maybe two members of your Senior Leadership Team need to work on strengthening their connection-based trust. Whatever the situation, referencing the three dimensions of trust can often help identify why a relationship is struggling and enable you to articulate how things can be improved. 

Part of being a trusted leader is ensuring that your company’s Core Values are reflected in your words and actions as a founder on a daily basis. Committing yourself to this shows your team members that they are valued, respected, and most of all, trusted. All this helps your organization continue on its journey to becoming a high-trust company (HTC) full of productive, collaborative, high-trust relationships. 

TUNE IN

In this episode, I discuss worldviews and their impacts on leaders and entrepreneurs. Tune in for my thoughts on how these perspectives influence the different aspects of a business, shaping its path forward in both quantifiable and intangible ways.