You know several people you trust and several that you do not. Have you ever considered how you came to those decisions? You probably never gave it a lot of thought about how you designated someone as trustworthy or not.
Have you ever considered how others view you? Do you think most people consider you to be trustworthy? If you’re concerned, there are several things you can do to enhance your trustworthiness score to others.
Use these strategies to be seen as more trustworthy by the people in your life:
- Be predictable. It’s hard to feel comfortable with or rely on someone that is unpredictable. When people can predict your mood and general behavior, you are viewed as more trustworthy. Volatile people aren’t seen as trustworthy. People that make changes abruptly aren’t viewed as trustworthy either.
- Be on time. Trustworthy people are on time with the arrival and their commitments. If you’re regularly late to work, appointments, assignments, or even just meeting your friends, you’re not seen as trustworthy.
– Being chronically late is also rude. Others may feel that you’re showing a lack of respect. This also makes you seem untrustworthy. - Avoid talking about others. People know that if you like talking about other people, it won’t be long before you’re talking about them, too. It’s best to limit the amount of time you spend talking about other people unless your statements are positive.
– Saying negative things about others is always a mistake. It frequently comes back to haunt you. Plus, people consider you to be untrustworthy with important information. - Keep your word. When you give your word, keep it. Do what you say you’re going to do. Be where you say you’re going to be. Be honest about your intentions and fulfill them. Avoid making commitments unless you’re certain you can keep them. Take all of your promises and commitments seriously.
- Admit your mistakes. People that are willing to admit their mistakes are considered to be more honest and trustworthy. If you don’t try to hide your mistakes, it allows people to trust you at a higher level.
- Be open. Avoid being that person with a mysterious life or secrets. There’s always that one person at work that refuses to discuss their life outside of work. Most often, we don’t consider that person to be trustworthy. We think:
– What are they hiding?
– Why are they hiding it?
– What else could they be hiding? - Keep secrets. If someone tells you something in confidence, keep that confidence. The quickest way to be seen as untrustworthy is to tell secrets that you were asked to keep. Be known for being that person that would never betray a confidence. You would want others to keep your secrets, so do the same.
– It can be so tempting to share juicy gossip. When someone can keep a secret, we trust them in many other ways, too. Keep your promises.
There are so many advantages to being seen as trustworthy that it’s worth rehabilitating your image if others don’t trust you.
If people view you as untrustworthy, it can impact your career and all of your relationships. Trustworthy people have a better choice of partners and friends. Trustworthy people have better relationships with everyone around them, including their own children.
You may have been untrustworthy in the past, but that situation doesn’t have to continue! It will take some time, but you can become the most trustworthy person you’ve ever known.