{"id":1770,"date":"2014-09-03T13:25:29","date_gmt":"2014-09-03T17:25:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.trustacrossamerica.com\/blog\/?p=1770"},"modified":"2014-12-29T15:55:32","modified_gmt":"2014-12-29T20:55:32","slug":"trust-confidence-competition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.trustacrossamerica.com\/blog\/?p=1770","title":{"rendered":"Trust, Confidence & Competition"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"TAA_R2_EDIT-CS3\"<\/a><\/p>\n

“When a business that’s comfortable not having 100% market share happily recommends a competitor, they’re sending a signal about trust and confidence and most of all, about feeding the community first.” This is a quote from a recent Seth Godin blog post<\/a>.<\/p>\n

If you are an entrepreneur, small business owner or consultant interested in building trust, ask yourself these two questions:<\/p>\n

Do\u00a0I spend all of my time promoting myself only?<\/strong><\/p>\n

If your answer is “yes”, I can almost assure you that this strategy may work in the short-term, but will present serious challenges long-term. It \u00a0shows low self-confidence, an unwillingness to share and learn, and you will potentially\u00a0bust trust with those you view (right or wrong) as competition.<\/p>\n

Do I spend some of my time\u00a0recommending others in my professional community who may have more targeted experience, resources or products, and will do a better job than I can?<\/strong><\/p>\n

If your answer is “yes,” you understand that trust is reciprocal and you are willing to take a “risk” that may pay off and lead to longer-term success. If we want to help ideas spread, if we want to change the world, we must do it together. Park your self-interest (along with your ego) at the door and try collaboration instead. The payoff may not be as quick and easy\u00a0but the long-term rewards will be well worth it.<\/p>\n

Barbara Brooks Kimmel<\/strong>\u00a0is the Executive Director of\u00a0<\/span>Trust Across America-Trust Around the World<\/a>\u00a0whose mission is to help organizations build trust. She is also the editor of the award winning\u00a0<\/span>TRUST INC.<\/a>\u00a0book series and the Executive Editor of\u00a0<\/span>TRUST! Magazine<\/a>. In 2012 Barbara was named \u201cOne of 25 Women Changing the World\u201d by Good Business International.<\/span><\/p>\n

Should you wish\u00a0to communicate directly with Barbara, drop her a note at\u00a0Barbara@trustacrossamerica.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Copyright \u00a9 2014, Next Decade, Inc.<\/p>\n