How To Build Trust by Keeping Quiet

Have you ever been betrayed by a friend you trusted with a secret?

Or…

Have you ever been the one to leak a secret you promised to keep?

Both feel devastating. 

If we’re either the victim or perpetrator of a secret not kept, hopefully it happens early in life so we have a chance to be better. 

Trust, as a character trait, is built in silence.  

Gossips are unable to stay silent. 

If they share other people’s secrets with you (“Okay, you CANNOT repeat this, but…”) then they will surely spill your tea to others. 

Gossip is such a sexy temptress because it’s exciting to be the one with “breaking news.”

You’ll never have greater attention from the people in front of you than after you ask them not to tell anyone what you’re about to tell them. 

Yet, in that same moment, you are giving up the single most valuable thing you can be known for: Trust. 

Building trust is like getting fit, in that the achievement requires patience and consistency.

But the outcome is far more rewarding than the “cheat.”