THE ART OF TRUST
feeling confident that the first doctor was looking out for the interests of Tania and the baby, but we decided to move forward without the C-section. We trusted the doctor to take us safely through the birth.
2. Competency
Competency literally means you have demonstrated skills and
abilities in a particular area. I trust my ophthalmologist to
treat issues and illnesses of my eyes, but I would not trust him
with handling issues I have with my knees.
You wouldn’t trust a ten-year-old to drive your car. They aren’t
competent to do so. You wouldn’t trust someone you just met
to housesit unless you did a background check and had them
sign a form stating they are 100% responsible for all of your
belongings while you are away (of course, that’s not trust at
all, is it?).
You wouldn’t trust your dog alone with your fried chicken
dinner, and you certainly wouldn’t trust your mechanic to fly a
jetliner on your trip to another country. However, you would
trust that your dog will always come to you and be excited
every time you walk into your home. You would trust your
mechanic to bring your car back into operational status.
When you give trust to someone in some particular area of
expertise, usually it is because they have proven they are
willing and able to fulfill a specific task, assignment, or need.
This speaks to competence.
3. Reliability
Dependable, devoted, faithful, truthful, and loyal. These are all
words that describe someone who is reliable. There are people
in your life who are competent at a specific skill, are honest in
their words, but they may not be all that reliable.
When you give a time, and a place for someone to meet you
and they don’t show up, you are more likely going to have
difficulty trusting that same person when you give them
another place and time to meet. One miss does not mean they
are unreliable. But two misses and one begins to doubt. Three
misses, and your trust that the other person will ever be there
on time wanes. This refers to reliability.