I just had an interesting interchange with one of my associates who was shocked that I was not offended by her expression of an opinion that was the polar opposite of mine.  I was shocked that she did not realize that it was safe and healthy to respectfully express your true perspective with out sugar coating it.  A difference of opinion can be a great starting point for growing trust NOT the end of it.  Respectful straight talk confronting a different perspective adds to trust while walking on eggshells and concealing your true feelings while purporting to have a candid discussion is a counterfeit behavior that actually destroys trust.  Hidden agendas undermine authentic communication.  Listening to the opposing opinions with the intent to understand and empathize builds trust.  Remember empathy is not sympathy or agreement–simply understanding their perspective.  Test this from you own experience.  You trust people that authentically express their true opinions more than those that hide them and tell you what they think you want to hear. Your greatest high trust relationships are based on open communication.  It’s good to work with those that see things differently as that fuels innovation and invention.

In an ethics study  released today of nearly 30,000 high schoolers entitled The Ethics of American Youth by the Josephson Institute in Los Angeles, 83% of teens report lying to their parents about something significant. 64% say they have cheated on an exam in the last year and 30% say they have stolen something from a store in the last year.  The shocker is that 93% say they are satisfied with their personal character and ethics revealing an alarming gap in their perception of their self trust. 

These are our future workers and leaders and we desperately need to change their perception of the importance of trust and ethics or our global crisis of trust is destined to deepen. 

I agree with what Michael Josephson, the institute’s founder and president had to say about the results: ”What is the social cost of that–not to mention the implication for the next generation of mortgage brokers? In a society drenched with cynicism, young people can look at it and say ‘Why shouldn’t we? Everyone else does it.’”

Clearly as a society at large it is critical for us to teach that trust is paramount to a global economy.  We must all make growing trust an explicit objective and behave accordingly to set the standard for the next generation.