Trust is something that the highly successful leader constructs over time and then nurtures over the course of any relationship, whether it is with a family member, a coworker, an employer or the community. Strong and deep relationships are built upon trust and trustworthiness. When you betray a trust, it shows a weakness in your character, and that leads to fewer opportunities and diminished chances for success.

When you do things that increase the level of trust, your capacity to build relationships, create and seize opportunities, and achieve success increases substantially. When trust is high, you become more effective and influential in all aspects of your life. Even the most complex interactions and transactions become significantly easier when there is a high level of trust.

You certainly want to trust others, and you want others to feel that they can trust you. Here are a few specific actions you can take to make yourself worthy of trust:

• Do high-quality work, and finish it on schedule.

• Be consistent so that others will see you as reliable.

• Be predictable.

• Be open in communicating commitments, and be willing to have your performance measured.

• Give trust.

• Tell the truth.

As you achieve trustworthiness and meet the expectations of others, you will experience peace and balance in your life. Your relationships will be more rewarding, you will be better able to resist negative influences and you will build self-respect.

Another specific action you can take to build and maintain trust includes conscientiously working to establish trust at all levels of your organization. Trust doesn’t simply flow from the top down. It’s vital that you have a culture in which employees are willing to share their feelings, to express concerns and to offer solutions. For that to happen, highly successful leaders create a culture of listening and understanding the ideas and feedback from others, no matter how unpleasant the circumstances may be.

The first step in creating bonds of trust is to build a rapport based on shared experiences and mutual understanding. It’s difficult to work with someone you don’t trust, and it’s even harder to trust someone you don’t know. The challenge in this fast-paced and hectic world is to learn the stories of those around you in order to build bonds of trust with them. Highly successful leaders always find a way to build relationships.

To build trust with someone, try these game-changing words: What is your story? No matter what your profession may be, if you take the time to get to know the people around you, it will establish a higher level of trust and foster opportunities for more business.

As you work to become your best in your relationships and your career, trust is a critical component.