The Speed of Trust is Needed Now More Than Ever

I’ve been a big fan of Steven Covey’s book The Speed of Trust since its publication in 2008. My work colleagues know how much I lean into Covey’s concepts, although if you are a millennial or younger, you may only remember Covey as the creator of the FranklinCovey planner your parents used to have.

Covey is most recognized for his best-seller, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. But it is another one of his books, The Speed of Trust, that resonates with me in a profound way. In some way, every day, I try to put into practice Covey’s guidance from this book.

Covey suggests that we think of trust as having two measurable outcomes – speed and cost. When trust is lacking, whether with an individual or an organization, speed decreases and costs increase. Why? Because a low trust environment creates a lot of unproductive friction, distractions and redundancies that drive up costs and slow down processes. The opposite is true as well. In high trust relationships and environments, everything happens more quickly and with a reduced emotional toll.

Covey cites Warren Buffet as an example of how trust is manifested in the business world. Buffet is able to strike deals at a scale and speed others cannot because he operates from a foundation of trust. He extends it and builds it in ways that others envy. What Buffet has realized is that work gets done with and through people. When trust is present, it has a powerful impact upon people, their work and their performance.

One of my favorite quotes from The Speed of Trust has to do with leadership: “The first job of a leader—at work or at home—is to inspire trust. It’s to bring out the best in people by entrusting them with meaningful stewardship, and to create an environment in which high-trust interactions inspire creativity and possibility.” 

That all begins with self-trust. Covey identifies four areas of personality and leadership style that must come together in order to be someone people will trust: integrity (includes honesty, courage and humility), intent (demonstrating positive intent, win-win scenarios), capabilities (practice what you’re not good at and understand your skill limitations) and results (demonstrating results that lead to credibility, doing what you say you are going to do).

One of the most powerful takeaways from Covey’s book is that trust is learnable. We don’t have to settle for the status quo. But trust doesn’t just happen because you bring smart, reliable and considerate people together and charge them with achieving a goal. Building trusting environments requires diligence and attention. It requires swift corrective redirection, and most importantly, trust emerges when leaders talk openly about it and lead by example.