This post is part of our Weekly Tips series.
I have certain routines and rituals I like to use in the classroom (I have them for business development, too, though that’s another post). If you’ve been to one of my workshops, you’re familiar with ending the experience with #10.
#10 refers to the tenth of 15 ways to build trust fast. The list is excerpted from Chapter 21 in The Trusted Advisor Fieldbook. Charlie Green and I made into a bookmark and an eBook.
#10 is an intimacy-builder: tell them something you really appreciate about them. In the workshop, volunteers have a moment to share something valuable they got from a fellow participant—an insight, a demonstration of courage, a laugh.
For sure, #10’s worth isn’t limited to the classroom setting. It’s a simple yet profound way to create connection quickly any time, with anyone.
Take note: #10 is easy to dismiss for a multitude of reasons, ranging from “I don’t want to sound like I’m kissing up” to “Shouldn’t intimacy take a little more effort than that?”
To address the former, do two things: (1) Be sure what you say really is genuine (yes, it’s that simple) and (2) trade in the excuse to say nothing for a caveat (“At the risk of sounding like I’m kissing up …”).
As for the latter—shouldn’t intimacy take a little more effort than that?—well … no, it shouldn’t and it doesn’t (yes, it’s that simple).
Make It Real
It’s Thanksgiving week here in the U.S.—the perfect time to take note of what you’re grateful for. Why not take it one step further and let a few people know what you appreciate about them?
Learn More
Read about the other 14 ways to build trust fast, or find out more about accelerating trust in Chapter 21 of The Trusted Advisor Fieldbook.
Andrea Howe
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