Trust-Can I steal it from you?
I just finished a book called Art of the Steal by Frank W. Abagnale.
If his name sounds familiar, it’s because he was the main character of the movie Catch Me if You Can and he was played by Leonardo DiCaprio. It’s one of my favorite movies.
Anyway, in the book, Frank talks about the many ways that people steal from one another- and one story he tells is the story of a young kid who broke into a corporate computer and stole all of the sensitive personal client information. He then contacted the major company and told them that if they would give him $100,000- he would not only give them all their sensitive information back, but also show them how he broke in and help them to fix it.
The declined his gracious offer and had him arrested.
Now, by this time, you are wondering how this has anything to do with the subject of this blog…right?
Glad you asked!
If this smart young man would have had the foresight or coaching to think about the skill level that he had and then present it in the right way, then he would have made MUCH more than the hundred grand that he asked for… he could have even their trust and then earned millions.
I think he was trying to get money and respect without gaining trust.
For example, if he would have approached the guys and said, “Hey, I think your system has some major flaws in it and I can prove it to you. If I can break into your computer system with in the next 2 days, would you agree to consider hiring me as a consultant to help you fix it?”
If he would have taken this approach, he could have secured not only their faulty, under-secured system, but also gained their trust– and YEARS of income for himself.
The point is, no matter what you do… singing, speaking, dentistry or auto-repair.. you have to gain trust before you can get very far.
Trust is not a right… it has to be earned somehow. You can’t demand that someone trust you (or respect you), you have to prove that you worthy of trust.
In the Empower Your Ministry course, we can show you some effective ways to gain what you need to thrive–TRUST.
What are some of the coolest ways you have seen a business gain trust?
What are some thing YOU have done to gain trust?
I want to know.
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Hi! Mickey Gamble & Kevin Ward here, creators of the 
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Trust is huge for me. It’s definitely a deal breaker in any relationship – personal or business. I like the comment that it has to be earned. It’s also, unfortunately, a rare gem in today’s culture. Which makes trust stand out which is cool when it is displayed. With regard to our ministry, when people ask you about something (either a fan or the pastor, etc) at a concert that requires you to follow through with something….say emailing them some additional info., or mailing them something, whatever…..and you actually do it, they love that. They earn your trust. We’ve gained countless fans by simply following through with something we said we’d do for them.
Sometimes when people come to the record table they might not have their cc or any cash on them, but they want some product. We encourage them to take whatever it is that they want, we bag it for them, then offer them an envelope with our return address already stamped on it. They usually look at us like we’re crazy – “You’re actually trusting me to do this??” – amazingly they usually send MORE than what the product actually cost. We’ve earned their trust so they’re investing in our ministry which is a win-win situation.
I love it Fawn. You turned the trust thing around on me…GREAT!
Sending them home with an envelope is cool! It shows that not only can they trust YOU, but that you trust them.
Awesome!
Kev
There is something to be said about building repore. Some people will trust you quicker than others but after a certain amount of time of always doing the right thing, people eventually get the message that you are not just out there to take them for all their worth. I manage a car lot in the central Va area. We are a car lot run by Christians not a “Christian business.” I would rather a customer walk onto the lot and see that we uphold the name of Christ without having to tell them that we are Christians. We had someone drive 8 hours today to look at a car that he had been looking to buy for a year and a half. People are surprised when the cars are exactly what we tell them they are. You don’t draw people in by telling them half truths and then hope they still buy car because they have driven 8 hours to look at it. You are upfront and when people see that you are being honest then they start to trust you. We also run a repair shop and we have a lot of customers who walk onto the lot to buy a car and many times they like us well enough that they continue to come back to get their car serviced. Some don’t buy a car from us and still come back to us for service because we are knowledgeable in what we do.
That is a round about way of saying what Kevin said of earning trust and respect. You treat people like they are on the same level as you and they are not the idiot. You don’t push stuff over onto people that they don’t want or are not comfortable with. I would say that no one walks onto our lot and feels like they were pushed into buying a car. You are knowledgeable in your area. And you look at the groups that have stood the test of time and the same model applies. The first that comes to mind is George Younce. Was he the best mc, the funniest person alive, and the greatest singer ever? Probably not. But he was loved by a lot of people and because they loved him they trusted him. Same way with groups that have been or were around for a long time. Greater Vision, Cathedrals, Gold City, Jake Hess, Goodmans, and the list goes on.
If you think about it Jeremy, the most successful groups in the past 20 years have been groups that could keep the same people for more than 2 recordings. They built “trust” with their fans that they would not change and that there was “harmony” among the members.
So trust is built on many levels.
I agree. I think that is good on two levels. First, you already mentioned repore between the fans and the group. I think it also builds trust within the group which I think you alluded to. The Bible refers to the stranded cord not being easily broken. If people in the group trust each other, that goes a long way and shows through in their interaction. You learn how the other person is going to act and react and that also makes the music and the harmony much tighter on the stage as well as day to day living.
Very good observation & comment, Jeremy.