# Life and Learning after One Hundred Years. Trust Is the Coin of the Realm Reflections on Trust and Effective Relationships across a New Hinge of History George P. Shultz December 13, 2020 [[Life and Learning After One Hundred Years.pdf]] [[16-02-2022]] - If you say that something is unacceptable but you are unwilling to impose consequences when it happens, your words lose their meaning and you will lose credibility. But if you are known to deliver on promises, then people will trust you and be willing to deal with you. - “Never agree to do something unless you know that you can do it. If you give your word, then you’d better deliver. That way people will deal with you because they know they can trust you.” - Law and morality are not the same. Morality reaches beyond the strictly legal. - if you are on moral high ground, stay there. If you speak firmly and with authority, sometimes people will do what they should even if they are not authorized to do so. - I learned that if you are to give legitimacy to an effort, involve people who truly represent their constituencies. Another major les- son has to do with the development of human relationships among those involved. Deep hatreds do exist, but personal rapport and respect may still be nurtured. - “That’s the most important point. Your speech is good, but to engage your listeners, it always helps to tell a relevant story they can relate to. That way, you’ll appeal not only to their minds but to their emotions.” Reagan understood that you could make a point or you could tell a story. Always tell a story to make your point whenever you can. It penetrates in a way no abstract point can—and it therefore forges an emo- tional bond, and emotional bonds build trust. - I found that when you give credit where credit is due, as with that sign of respect in Leningrad, then your criticisms end up carrying more weight; you are seen as someone who is fair, someone who can be dealt with. - The agreement was: trust, but fortify that trust with verification. So verification led to trust, and trust promoted verification. - Trust is fundamental, reciprocal, and pervasive. If it is present, anything is possible. If it is absent, nothing is possible. - If, as a leader, you want people to be trustworthy, then let them know that you trust them. The best leaders trust their followers with the truth, and do you know what happens then? Their followers trust them back. And next? With that bond between them, they can do big, hard things together.