How important is Trust?

This morning I started reading the Speed of Trust by Stephen M. K. Covey.  This is not the writer or founder of the Highly effective series, this is his son.

I personally love Stephen R. Covey books and I was thinking that this was another book by him, until I started reading.  When I realized the mistake I wasn't as excited to read the book but continued to read anyway.  As I read my trust in the author increased.

In my personal life I have also been dealing with some trust issues.  As trust in these individuals has declined so has my relationship with them.

Stephen M. K. Covey actually comes up with an equation about trust As trust goes down so does speed, but cost goes down.  As trust increases speed goes up and costs go down.

So I ask the question how important in trust?

At the beginning of the Survivor series I was a dedicated watcher of the show.  Early on in the series there was a final where a young woman and an older man were the two finalists.  Each of the two finalists played a great game.  Neither of the contestants had made any enemies.  What it boiled down to in the end was that the young woman was always honest in her dealings, but the majority of the jurors couldn't believe that anyone could be so honest.  They didn't trust what they had seen and experienced because it was not what they were used to.

Trust is a very large factor in our decision making.  When we lack trust we are unwilling to put our backing behind things.  If we don't trust ourselves we won't act upon things that will make our lives better.  If we don't trust a company we will not become customers.  If we do not trust an individual we will not put much energy into building a relationship with them.

A lack of trust in people, business, government, healthcare etc.  is costing our society everything.  This lack of trust has increased regulations and costs while slowing down the process of getting anything done.  Marriages are on the decline, our government can't seem to get anything done and people are more interested in doing everything online rather than going out and dealing with people.

So once again I ask how important is trust.  Trust is everything.  Once you lose it, it is hard to get back.  Developing it will make the difference between success and failure.  That being said, ask yourself are you acting in a matter that will inspire trust?  If not what do you need to do to change that?

I know that I still need to learn more.  How about you?