Gave my nephew,  a 20 something, a ride to the airport from his uncle’s funeral today.  He asked me to name  the most important principle to have a successful career.  His generation asks great questions.  My #1 advise to him was to work so that his reputation and credibility precede him.  A tall order.  Get a senior mentor in the organization and perform so that he or she will gladly give you a job reference for the rest of your life.  Do not suck up–perform honorably! That’s it.  The cumulative effect of having a reputation as a go to guy is the essence of The Speed of Trust.

“By virtue of its immensity, the global effort to restore trust will… almost certainly succeed.”  Business WeekJames C. Cooper, Senior Editor and Economist, for BusinessWeek  actually said this in an article in BusinessWeek last October but it rings with new hope in light of the unprecedented stimulus package signed in my home town of Denver today. The Stimulus package violates my sense of the free market principles but may be better than the alternative of letting market forces bankrupt miss guided companies as it would in a normal market. It is a slippery slope, however.  The medicine may prove to be worse than the illness.  Not holding organizations and individuals accountable for their actions is a clear violation of market trust.   James Cooper clearly described the problem:  “Individual governments are rapidly filling in the details as they move unilaterally to address their own needs, but with the common purpose of attacking the broader problem of eroding confidence in the financial system. Modern finance, in which a relatively small base of capital supports a much larger volume of credit, depends on three things: sufficient capital among banks, liquidity to keep funds flowing, and trust that everyone will get paid. The problem with this financial trinity is that trust is not only dependent on the first two, but also turns on human emotion. Too much fear can bring down the house. By virtue of its immensity, the global effort to restore trust will almost certainly succeed.”

I remain optimistic that keeping a cool head and having a propensity to trust the free market system will ultimately right the global economy.  We each have to do our part to restore confidence by behaving in ways that inspire trust.  We also must spend and invest and act as if we believe in the system.  I have confidence that just like the savings and loan crisis, the dot com bubble, 9/11, and numerous other market disruptions in recent history, that the economy will recover more quickly than the press would have us believe but only if we each step up in our own circle of influence and restore trust and confidence. 

Previously I mentioned that I was reading Jeff Jarvis’ new book What Would Google Do?  I was just struck by his comments on market trust: “Leaders in government, news media, corporations, and universities think they and their institutions can own trust when, of course, trust is given to them.  Trust is earned with difficulty and lost with ease….Trust is an act of opening up; it’s a mutual relationship of transparency and sharing.  The more ways you find to reveal yourself and listen to others, the more you will build trust, which is your brand.”  We of course, agree whole heartedly.  Jeff does an excellent job of giving us a glimpse of the implications of violating trust in a post google transparent world.  His experience with Dell is worth the price of the book alone. How we behave in this financial crisis will effect our credibility, reputation and brand for years to come.  Are you behaving in ways that inspire the trust of your stakeholders, especially your customers?  

I will resist the almost overwhelming temptation to quote Jeff further and will instead, again, strongly urge you to read this book right away.  In times of trouble we need to challenge ourselves to get better and to reframe our thinking.  Jeff provokes new thinking that I believe, regardless of your profession or industry, will either excite you about the possibilities of the future or scare you enough to confront reality and change your expectations.  You know I read a lot of business books so I have a somewhat informed judgement.  I predict that this is another Tipping Point  and as such will top the business lists for years to come.

Jeff Jarvis explores that question as a window on the future market reality in his very compelling new book of the same name.  What Would Google Do? is thought provoking on many levels.  As our friend Seth Godin says “Five years from now, many people are going to regret the fact that they didn’t read this book today, when they had the chance.”  I feel the same way.  I can’t put it down.  Read it before your competition does.