I couldn’t help but wonder this after reading the following from Solomon and Flores in their book on trust:
“Trust and control are incompatible because the core of trust involves freedom.”
This is worth chewing on if we manage people or commercial relationships… or contract for them. The more control that is exerted, the less trust will flourish.
And how we love to control… particularly if we feel that there are risks at play.
Yet trust requires risk. The risk of failure. The risk of betrayal. The risk of embarrassment.
Have we got the balance right between control and freedom? Are we prepared to dial-back control to allow the freedom that trust thrives on? You know, the freedom to innovate, the freedom to be honest, the freedom to contribute.
➜ A better question might be: do we trust trust?