When you finally trust someone without any doubt, you finally get one of two results: A person for life or a lesson for life.
When you finally trust someone without any doubt, you finally get one of two results: A person for life or a lesson for life.
Trust me.
Famous last words. Right?
The fully immersive moment of trusting another human being comes with consequences. That is the all encompassing risk of the trust experience.
In many cases we hope to trust another person, and we metaphorically cross our fingers and we take our chances. Sometimes it works out magically and other times, it can be catastrophic. Trusting another person can deliver all the shades of grey in-between.
When someone places their trust in us, it is a sacred honor that they are giving us. They are placing their faith in our ability to live up to what we have promised and empowering us to deliver, at minimum, all that we have promised. It does not matter if the promise is small or large, once it is a promise, it is for all intent and purposes a contract. Almost a sacred one, at that.
Trust determines character. It defines a person and their values. It demonstrates to others whom they truly are, and what their value system is. When someone gives you their word, you are cautious in determining to what extent you are willing to believe what they have promised. That is why we use the phrase, “I would trust them with my life,” when we describe the person(s) whom we value most in the world.
When someone places their trust in you, you are empowered with their faith. That gives you ammunition to take out into the world of whatever it is that you are pursuing, and accelerate with every last ounce of energy you may have to ensure that their trust does not go unanswered. Any option shy of that demonstrates to them and to yourself that you are not the person you ought to be. It proves to both parties the true measure of your character and delivers proof beyond reproach that you are or you are not someone “to be trusted.”
In the world of politics, there are continuous promises made on the campaign trail that are made with a veneer of truth but are more focused on trying to aggregate a large enough audience to seek the office. Once elected, those campaign promises are a distant shadow in the rearview mirror, and are many times discarded in favor of serving the key interests of the donors and supporters who funded their campaign. What lesson is this supposed to deliver to people who believe in them? Does this value system spread from our supposed “leaders” down to their constituents? Does it teach a core lesson in immorality that spreads throughout society like a plague? What do you suppose would change in our world if politicians promised one thing and then, completely did the opposite and there were definitive consequences (beyond not getting reelected) that came as a penalty for lying on the campaign trail?
Since the dawn of time, literature and media have been filled with stories of promises broken. This is because it is the source of great drama and comedy. We wish to believe, as does the protagonist or other characters in the story, and when that belief is desecrated, the consequences are substantial. That always makes for great drama and it is the perfect set up for hilarious comedy.
But in real life, when we trust another, we are making a wager. One that comes with consideration and consequence. We have opted to believe in another person and we have positioned ourselves in a place of vulnerability that will either deliver us someone in whom we may believe in, in an ongoing basis…. Or we are left with a life lesson.
Happy Thursday!
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