How does trust affect success?

Nearly three years ago, I took a leap of fate to begin my lifelong dream of having a writing career.  I say fate rather than faith, because I trusted that it was my fate to do it.  I have wanted to be a writer since before I could draw my letters.  I used to draw squiggly lines under pictures to tell the images' stories.  Writing has always been an important aspect of what makes me who I am.  When I took that writing leap, I trusted that, at long last, it was the right time to do it.

More than that, I trusted a lot of other things in that leaping moment.  I trusted that all of the things that come with a successful career - finances, recognition, and achievement - would come in time.  I trusted that this endeavor would make me happy.  I trusted that, overall, I would make good choices (or at least choices that weren't detrimental to anyone) and I trusted that I would figure out the obstacles and challenges I met along the way.  These are all vital aspects of this undertaking that I had to trust.

But, there was still more; I had to trust myself, my skills, and my ability to turn my desires and goals into realities.  All of this translates into self-trust, but I did not take this leap alone.  There is also trusting others and trusting the community.  (This summer, Chantel introduced the concept of trust and pointed out these three aspects of it.)

Besides trusting myself, I had to trust others, even though some of those others didn't necessarily trust me.  Some of the people closest to me thought this leap was a fool's errand and one or two among them seemed to help create obstacles for me to ensure my failure, while at the same time trying to help me.  Needless to say, there were plenty of bumps in the road, but I trusted they would come through and the vast majority of them trusted what I was doing enough to help me.  I'm not sure if it was my abilities, ambition or commitment they trusted or maybe some combination thereof, but I reached out to my friends and family and got the support I needed by trusting them.

The community trust had its own set of hurdles to get over, because, in essence, I had to build a brand new community of clients and a network of colleagues and supporters.  It started off slowly, but it has grown and is building momentum.  Not only do I have a committed group of returning clients, but an even larger community of supporters all of whom continue to give referrals for my work and service.  That is the two-way street of community trust.  I trust that they will request my services and they trust that I will provide quality service.

Trust is not always an easy thing to have, it is important and it begins with self-trust.  Self trust builds confidence which, in turn, creates empowerment.  If you trust in yourself and your abilities, it will show in the successes you achieve.  Are you ready to take a leap?

Practice Engaging Your Inner Wisdom:  Option 1 - Make a list of the skills you possess.  This includes everything from solving complex equations and writing poetry to playing music, cooking, driving, even making beds.  Which of those skills do you trust the most (have the most confidence in)?  Which skills give you the most satisfaction when you use them?  Are they the same?  How can or do you use those trusted skills to achieve success?

Option 2 - I've shared a story with you about how I achieved success through trust.  Share your story with me.  Leave a comment on this post or email me and let me know if I can share it with our readers in a future post or if you just want to share with me.