why trust is worth it (video)

Thought provoking...  amazing athletic movements ...

Just a bit over 3 minutes... you'll want to see it more than once!

Thanks to Ze Frank for sharing this!




'trust is something we build but it is also about letting go"

"such a tragedy when it is broken"

"trust is your relationship to the unknown"

"it is worth it to keep trying and it is not easy"

"so who do you trust and how can you grow it?"

The Trust Equation

Trust, how do you get there? Charles H Green talks about the Trust Equation in this short and helpful video.

Trust equals the sum of Credibility plus Reliability plus Intimacy all divided by Self Orientation

T = (C + R + I)/S


When the self dominates, there is little trust. When the self is minimized, increasing the focus on the other there is more trust.




How can you use this today to help someone?



You can find more tips on trust on the TrustedAdvisor website

Job search notes: LinkedIn Job Seeker Premium Service - not a silver bullet

No one ever got their MBA because of superior empathetic skills. Few people, if any, had a successful law school career because of their predilection for being a team-player rather than focusing on their own accomplishments. No-one teaches you (formally) the abilities of being a good conversationalist - having a fresh point of view, but not trying to thrust it upon everyone else, speaking politely and respectfully; telling good stories to illustrate key points; being good at drawing other people’s views out and drawing them into the conversation; not being afraid to admit areas of ignorance; listening with genuine interest. In our educational system (and in our firms’ training and development approaches) these basic human skills are either absent, or treated as secondary.

It sounds trivial and trite to say “It’s all about learning to deal with people,” but what’s often overlooked is that it’s very HARD to develop such people skills if you don’t start until later in life. People and firms underestimate how much effort and time it takes to develop such skills.

This is just one good bit from David Maister's interview with Charles H Green in the Trust Quotes series Charles is running. I recommend going ahead to read the full article here. Don't worry. I'll be here and waiting for you when you come back.

Back now? Good let's continue. Do you recall that David goes on to say:

When people ask, “How can I be seen as more trustworthy?” there’s more than a little hint of “Let’s get to the stage where I begin to benefit as quickly as possible.”

In this context, LinkedIn's new premium service offering for job seekers can be seen as LinkedIn trying to serve a market need (job seeker's needing to find a job) who are willing to pay for something that otherwise (with a little time and effort) would be free.

Phil Rosenberg has a good overview of the new service here.
The LinkedIn blog had the announcement here

I commented on Phil's post about the two key issues I see with this service leading to an overall lack of ROI for me as a job seeker.

To expand upon the point of knowing more about the folks who search for me, even if the folks set their profile to show more info about themselves (and a number don't, so paying for it is paying for no more than you get today), what would you do with that info?

If you know it is raining out, you could be prepared with a raincoat or at least an umbrella. The knowledge can lead to a change in behavior. Knowing it is 90 degree F, you might consider going with a short sleeve shirt instead of a long sleeve and no coat instead of your wool blazer.

So "Someone in the Logistics function in the Defense & Space industry from Greater Boston Area" has searched for you (and this is a recent example from my own profile), how is that going to change your behavior?

If you were behaving inappropriately, you should reconsider period.

If you are behaving consistently within your realm, using your skills and qualifications, then would there be a behavior change?

And if there wouldn't be, is that info enough to pay for? Not in my book.

So let's shift gears a bit and take this on from the hiring managers point of view. You post a job on LinkedIn and obtain a listing of candidates. With this new premium offering, the listing now contains some folks on the top of the listing who have paid to be there? Are they any more qualified? Do they even have the skills required? But they paid to be on top? How much weight will that carry?

Wouldn't it still come down to the trust factor? Will LinkedIn be trusted to provide qualified candidates just because they have paid for a premium account?

Wouldn't it be better for the job seeker to spend time seriously and intentionally building their network based upon real quality relationships?

Wouldn't a group like the "Top Recommended People" on LinkedIn be a better source of qualified candidates than someone who has paid for a premium account (all things being equal)?

Let me close with another quote from David that I'll extend to this conversation:

I think we are living in organizations which have low (and declining) trust and individuals are responding in kind. I think our economy and society has been training people to not trust.

If you think the LinkedIn Job Seeker Premium service is a silver bullet, you can happily pay for the privilege.

What do you think?



Disclosure: I am a member of the Top Recommended People. I have chosen not to pay for any premium
account services as I have found no compelling reason to do so. If you do have any reasons, I am open to discussing them.

job search notes: to be LinkedIn or not?

This started post as a comment on Lewis Howes blog post advising Chris Brogan to stay on LinkedIn. I have expanded on my explanation here and added links.

You should review Lewis' post here and Chris' post here to get the full background story.

Lewis, these are all good reasons for us to stay.

Unfortunately, I don't believe that they apply as well for Chris. I would consider Chris as a major exception, The major reason is the one he has already provided for leaving; he can't provide good reference connections. He doesn't know the people well enough to do so. That problem is self-created. Chris is an open networker and accepts all (or at least almost all) requests to connect. And yes, the value is in a good network.

However, the real value in the network is the relationship amongst 2nd and 3rd degrees and making connections. Chris can't reasonably do so. Why? He spends his time elsewhere.

So the fact that he has as many connections as he does, does not help you or I or anyone else. None of us can leverage Chris' connections to get an introduction to the other party. To the party that may help us to satisfy a business opportunity.

The second reason, is that with Chris' current behavior on LinkedIn, he is actually going counter to the brand he is trying to create as a "trust agent". As a trust agent, he should be able to make good connections amongst those in his network. When he fails to do so (which is often), and he is recognizing this as a problem (which is now and it is about time), then it is time to make a change,

In this case, I would change his profile
- to not accept anymore connections
- to not accept any reference requests
- to not make his connections visible (reduces the opportunity for others to see and utilize)

These changes can all be made in his profile settings.

I would advise Chris to keep his profile but by making these changes, it would reduce the utilization by others (i.e. all of us) and allow Chris to maintain a presence (for Google juice reasons) so that, if at such time in the future, he decides to use LinkedIn (instead of everywhere else he is spending his time) he wont have to start all over.

Note - I would not recommend making these changes for anyone else, just Chris.
 

Note - I do know Chris having worked with him on all the PodCamp Boston events, including the opportunity to share a long train ride back from PodCamp NewYork. Chris is doing quite well. He doesn't need LinkedIn like we do.

Note: I was one of those who last year did request a connection through Chris to someone else in order to prepare for a job posting. He came back with an apology that he couldn't make the connection as he didn't know the person that well. Since then, I have excluded Chris from my possible links to other connections. By making the setting changes as suggested above, Chris maintains his profile, keeps it very positive, returns to "trust agent" behavior (well almost), and, at least, avoids creating more issues where he has to turn down connection/reference requests.

What do you think?

Seven cardinal rules for the practice of risk communication

(as first expressed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and several of the field's founders)

• Accept and involve the public as a legitimate partner
• Plan carefully and evaluate your efforts
• Listen to the public's specific concerns
• Be honest, frank, and open
• Coordinate and collaborate with other credible sources
• Meet the needs of the media
• Speak clearly and with compassion

From the Wikipedia entry on Risk Management where the source is cited as: Seven Cardinal Rules of Risk Communication. Pamphlet drafted by Vincent T. Covello and Frederick H. Allen. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC, April 1988, OPA-87-020.


These are good rules for communication, period.
These would be the actions of a trust agent.

Tom Peters: "leadership is a sacred trust"

Tom Peters on the "leadership is a sacred trust"



Thanks to David Zinger for the pointer to this video clip.

Well worth the three short minutes to view!

failure is an inevitable part of the game

Start the process of tinkering. Don't put your hand on a hot burner (please), but do start a new web site, a new marketing campaign, or a new Web community. Why? The answer, you will quickly come to realize, is that, with everything you decide to do, "it's so crazy that it just might work." Understand that failure is an inevitable part of the game, but that the chance of success is much greater the more often you roll the dice. You shouldn't fear it; you should embrace it.

The quote is from Trust Agents by Chris Brogan and Julian Smith. 

side step the perceived limitations

"I wanted to sidestep the perceived limitations and reputations of both 'time management' and 'work/life balance' genres, which tend to be bland and focus on incremental improvements. The term lifestyle design," said Ferris, was intended "to create a category of one where I defined the rules and set the standards. Don't be better at following the guidelines and constraints that accompany a common label - be different and call yourself such. If the concept or category you create catches a foothold, you're the first to mindshare. Let the rest of the world that follows be compared to you. Particularly in a world where power is often measured in links, this puts you in pole position."

The quote is from Trust Agents by Chris Brogan and Julian Smith.

Ferris is Tim Ferris, the author of "The 4-Hour Workweek".

6 characteristics of a Trust Agent

I have finished reading, or devouring the book by Chris Brogan and Julian Smith, Trust Agents. In the course of my reading, I marked several parts. Marking a book used to be verboten when I was in school. It has become something of a habit, part of my learning process, as I have gotten older. It has also helped that the books I now mark are my own and not school books meant to be returned and reused by dozens, if not hundreds of others.

The main ideas behind the concept of trust agents are contained in these six characteristics:

1. Make your own game
2. One of us
3. The Archimedes Effect
4. Agent Zero
5. Human Artist
6. Build an Army

Subsequent chapters of the book develop the story behind these ideas. My book markings will help to illuminate the ideas.

The quote is from Trust Agents by Chris Brogan and Julian Smith. The explanation is my own.

Not the kind of thing you would call yourself

"Trust agent isn't the kind of thing you would call yourself. That's like people calling themselves gurus, divas, goddesses, or experts. Let other people call you that."

A trust agent is not born but developed overtime. Not claimed but ordained by acclamation!

The quote is from Trust Agents by Chris Brogan and Julian Smith. The explanation is my own.

Follow the yellow brick road

Tom Asacker has published his newest article, actually an update of something he did some time ago but still very much relevant.

P.S. Never forget the true lesson of the Wizard of Oz. Act like the person (or brand) you want to become and it will eventually become your reality. Good luck.

Sounds just like being a trust agent doesn't it?

One of my all time favorite movies, The Wizard of Oz. You can read the full article here:

Discover Simple, Private Sharing at Drop.io

Trust Agents - dramatic reading

Well done, a wild idea! A great way to get the effect of the book.



Thanks to John Moore at Brand Autopsy

Government that you can trust

While I work on Franklin Matters sharing information to create an informed community, the fact that there is still mistrust of government is an issue to be addressed. The ethics changes made by Governor Patrick and others are a step in the proper direction for the state level. This Common Cause effort should help us on the national stage.



What change would you like to see to enable a government you can trust?

job search notes: the best worker is a trust agent

I met Chris Brogan at the first PodCamp Boston and we have met at a number of conferences/events since then. He has collaborated with Julien Smith on a book being published in August called Trust Agents.

"Using the Web to Build Influence, Improve Reputation, and Earn Trust" Chris and Julien gave the following presentation to a recent conference that focused on publishers.

The concept can apply just as easily to one searching for their next work opportunity. Aren't we all trying to improve our reputation and earn trust? View this presentation looking for the parallels to your job search effort.

Trust Agents for Publishers

View more Microsoft Word documents from chrisbrogan.

Do you see ways to change your search effort?

You can follow Chris Brogan on his blog.
You can follow Julien Smith on his blog.
You can pre-order Trust Agents at Amazon.
Down load their free e-book on Trust Economies

You should consider registering for PodCamp Boston 4. Who knows who you'll meet there?

"Franklin voters will be able to start trusting again"

Yes, I did say that.

During the Town Council meeting 5/7/08 when Chairman Chris Feeley proposed a committee to prepare a long range projection for Town finances.

I'll have the complete audio file up some time this week. In the mean time, you can read the full article in the Milford Daily News here

My "live blogging" recap of the meeting can be found here.

If a Belicheck could check a signal, how many signals would he check?

Gee Bill, how could you:

"Earlier this week, I spoke with Commissioner Goodell about a videotaping procedure during last Sunday's game and my interpretation of the rules. At this point, we have not been notified of the league's ruling. Although it remains a league matter, I want to apologize to everyone who has been affected, most of all ownership, staff and players. Following the league's decision, I will have further comment."

Or said in so many other words from one of your 'favorite' players:

"I think that the Patriots live by the saying, 'If you're not cheating, you're not trying,'" San Diego running back LaDainian Tomlinson was quoted as saying Tuesday. "I'm not surprised because you keep hearing the different stories (and) people complaining about the stuff that they do."

This is so sad. Trust has just vanished!

When I go to Gillette Stadium to watch the NE Revolution play I will have trouble looking at the Super Bowl banners hung high around the stadium and wonder:

If a Belichick could check a signal, how many signals would a Belichick check?



Oh, I should update my Business Lessons from the Patriots now that we can add cheating to the mix.

Confusion and sorting it out

The Wamponoag Indian tribe fought long and hard for recognition as a tribe so they could benefit from the advantages of running a casino. They leveraged these advantages to work a deal with Middleborough to pour bunches of money into Middleborough in return for establishing a casino.

"Free" money is hard to turn down when the economy is such that town and school budgets are struggling to keep current with unfunded state and Federal mandates. There is only so much room that Prop 2 1/2 provides. Enough has already been talked of on both sides of that story.

The point of this is now that the Wampanoag leader, Glenn Marshall, has apparently falsified his background claiming he was a war vet with medals (when he was in high school at the time), when he did not admit of a previous conviction of rape, what does this do for the deal that the tribe and Middleborough reached?

Money is the root of all evil.

Casino's don't bring gold for "free".

Advertising dollars are similar to casino dollars. The giver looses something in the transaction. If there was something "like a free lunch", that would be a different story. If it sounds too good to be true it usually is.

Where are true leaders these days? Glenn is less than what he claimed to be. Our current president is prone to re-inventing history. The papers are littered with stories of how the mighty have fallen.

It is time for the individual to return to the ethical basics.

Time for parents to show good examples for this children.

Time for respectful dialog.

Time for learning and growing.

If we fail in this, I fear we will really fail!

Business Lessons from the Patriots

Harvard Business School as a review of the new book on the Patriot's: Patriot Reign: Bill Belichick, the Coaches, and the Players Who Built a Champion by Michael Holley.

I'll have to put it on my list (already growing long) of books to read this year.

In the mean time, let me share some thoughts on what I have been witnessing and tie to what I heard during the broadcast of the Patriot-Steelers game last night. The commentators were remarking on how Belichick has developed this team. He finds good players, each player has a role, emphasizing how each player participates in each game. And they were saying all this as if the rest of the NFL didn't, in fact, going so far as to say others were now considering this.

There are a number of business folks who say that is it more important to have the right people on the bus than to have people on the bus. NFL players do not come as cheaply as office workers. To have some number of them just practice and not play is certainly a waste. Why are they there? Why doesn't the rest of the NFL do what the Patriot's do? Probably for the same reasons as why the rest of the business world does not. Some get it, some don't.

So, the bottom line for the today's business lesson reinforced by the success of the New England Patriot's: Set a goal, get good players, ensure each knows their role, ensure each does their thing each day/game, regroup after and review what was done and what is required for the next time. The positive reinforcement of this process is self-fulfilling. Walk the talk. And who knows how far your team will go!

I believe that the Patriot's will continue to go as far as they want to go as long as Bill Belichick is leading the way.

Go Patriot's!

How far he will continue to go will be questioned now that he has admitted to cheating.
updated 9/12/07