The Importance of TRUST

The longer I live, the more I realize that “trust” is the #1 ingredient in any meaningful relationship. Simply put, human beings like to spend time around people they can trust. Don't you like to surround yourself with people you can count on? Unfortunately, we seem to live in an era where you can’t always trust those you encounter. A person’s “word” doesn’t always align with their actions.

Trust often takes a long time to develop. However, it can vanish in an instant. The only way I really know how to establish trust is to do what you say you’re going to do. If you tell someone you’re going to pick them up at 3:30, be there at 3:28. If you promise someone you’re going to pay them back on Tuesday, do it. If you say you’re going to bring a gallon of milk home after work, bring a gallon of milk home...no matter what.

Trust is too often taken for granted. We sometimes think we’re too busy to honor all of our commitments. Once trust is lost, it is impossible to earn back in full. Like so many things in life, trust is won/lost in the nitty gritty details. Trust is earned and lost in the day-to-day functions of individuals, teams, and organizations. Talk doesn't cook rice....your actions speak so much louder than your words...be reliable.

As we head into the 2018 legislative session, “trust” is going to be a huge factor. I believe a big part of the political and financial mess we have regarding school funding is lack of trust between state lawmakers and school leaders. Some state lawmakers don't understand how schools are funded and they don't trust schools to cut their local tax requests if/when they receive more money. Many school leaders don't trust that lawmakers will actually fund public schools like the school funding formula calls for and therefore won't cut local tax requests in a year they might be able to because they are so worried about next year because they have been burned so many times in the past. We lack viable sustainability. We lack long-term vision. We lack trust. We need to be able to look past the next 6-12 months. We can only do that if we vastly improve the level of trust.

I've lost trust in Republicans and Democrats. I want Nebraskans leading Nebraska and Americans leading America. I'm extremely disenchanted with Republicans and Democrats. Give me Nebraskans/Americans I can trust to serve their voters instead of their political parties.

I'm not a big "new year's resolution" kind of guy...way too much of that stuff is just talk. However, as we close in on 2018, I plan to emphasize trust more than ever with my family, my inner circle, and those I work with. I want to be known/remembered for someone that always did what he said he was going to do.

What does "trust" mean to you?