I don't think so!

Trust is never broadcasted for others to assume. It is earned over time. It is based upon your actions and attitude, not your arrogance, age, or wallet.

I have the privilege of knowing several extremely brilliant individuals. Their most common trait is not their level of intelligence, but the fact that they realize that they don't know everything. They listen to everyone. Here is one example:

Bill is the sweetest and smartest person I ever met. He is like a big teddy bear and is a walking absent-minded professor. He has solved some of the most complex problems in the financial community. He has designed some of the most integrated technical architectures. He has NEVER boasted about any of his accomplishments. Yet, Bill has earned the trust of many top executives and many technologists.

What is Bill's secret?

1. Bill is kind. He never says a bad word about anyone. When he needs to explain things to those of lesser intelligence, he never belittles them. Bill told me once that these individuals are smart in a different way. After all, they are smart enough to know what they don't know or can't do and bring in someone that can. That's pretty smart!
   
   
2. Bill is a listener. When anyone mentions his intelligence, he replies, "I don't know everything. In fact, I don't understand your perspective of this problem. Could you explain it to me?" Wow! Doesn't that make the other person feel as if their knowledge is important?
   
   
3. Bill sees value in everyone. Whatever the other person knows may spark more ideas to tweak his own perspective on a problem.
   
   
4. Bill is smart enough to know that he doesn't know everything. In fact, he realizes how little he knows in comparison to all the different perspectives and options available in the world. He asks himself how well do I understand something and never tells himself that he understands already.
   
   
5. Bill helps when asked. He never pushes someone who isn't ready; offering his opinion without finding out more. Bill does try to help by offering advice...but only when someone is ready to listen. He doesn't care if the information he provides is taken, he is more concerned that the person picks what is right for the person asking for the advice. Ego is about being trusted to offer advice, not that that advice be taken.

Because Bill is kind, a listener, and humble enough to see value in everyone, people gravitate to him. They open their minds and hearts to listen to what Bill has to say. That provides him the opportunity to earn a person's trust.

Before anyone begins to trust you, they want to get a sense of your character. People want to know "Who are you and why should I listen to you?" Most people will explain for hours why they should be listened to before they listen to the problem or another person's perspective.

• I have never heard Bill say, "This is how we did it before."
• I have never heard Bill say, "I know best."
• I have never heard Bill say, "Trust Me...I know what I'm doing."
• I have never heard Bill say, "You don't know what you are talking about."

I have also never seen Bill denied the opportunity to express his point of view. Nor have I ever seen Bill cut off and told he is wrong.

What is Bill's secret?

1. Bill knows that his character is judged first. He makes sure that he always keeps his character bright and shiny.
   
   
2. His knowledge and intellectual ability to add value comes only after he has earned enough trust to speak. Value is determined by the people he is trying to help...not himself.
   
   
3. His knowledge is absorbed only if he can start explaining his thoughts from the other person's perspective. To understand where to begin, he listens and asks many questions before he offers any ideas about solutions.
   
   
4. Bill expresses his ideas by telling a story that demonstrates how the information will help the problem and the individual. The stories relate to the current situation. The stories may contain solutions that have worked elsewhere but the name of the previous company is never supplied unless asked by the client. After all, all clients know that their problem is different. Bill acknowledges this by what he doesn't say.
   
   
5. Bill's solutions always keep in mind the underpinning of business...money and time. His solutions are based on what is best for the client, not what would be the most interesting for him to develop.
   
   
6. Bill devotes all his energy to help the client. He will go days without sleep to solve a problem. He will call anyone he knows to help stimulate a solution.

What has Bill received in return?

1. Opportunities to work on some pretty interesting and challenging projects.
   
   
2. Opportunities to work with some brilliant people (great people gravitate to each other).
   
   
3. Money!
   
   
4. A Trust Advisor to many. All of which would provide video testimonials to vogue for his character, intellect, and work ethic. I want to be the first in line for that opportunity!

I met Bill decades ago when I was a gate-keeper for a huge mission-critical project. I knew nothing about him. I was introduced by a manager that had heard about him from someone the manager trusted.

Bill was on time and confirmed the amount of time we had available. He respected our time more than his own.

Bill came into the office with a briefcase full of papers (that fell out when the briefcase fell onto the floor). I asked for something like a resume. Bill replied, "Of course. What problem needs to be solved?" We immediately began to discuss the project. I forgot about the resume. In fact, I never saw his "resume" until years later when I wanted advice for mine. It didn't matter once he started asking questions.

The only words that Bill spoke were to ask more questions for the next hour. His questions were thought-provoking and illustrated his understanding of the problem at hand. His suggestions were expressed in terms of a story about the possibilities of different potential solutions. His ideas were expressed after he understood what we understood (I did not know the technology he was proposing) and understood our perspective of the problem.

A day later, I received an email from him with other ideas. He had worked for several hours on the problem (before being offered the position). His ideas were expressed with a caveat.

• "Do I understand the problem correctly?"
• "From your perspective, would investigating this idea be valuable?"
• "Could we meet again so I can understand your point about...?"

Bill was hired for the project.

• Not because he was the cheapest.
• Not because he told us he was brilliant.
• Not because he solved this problem before.
• Not because he said "Trust Me"

Bill was hired because he was trusted! Bill was trusted to get the job done...which he did. He illustrated reasons to trust him through his character-related actions prior to being hired.

Do you illustrate trust or tell people to trust you?

SBDi speaks both Business and IT languages. Bring SBDi in to help communication between both organizations. Let us help you find the right flexible solution that will help business increase revenue.

Pat Ferdinandi, Chief Thought Translator