Ho‘ohana Aloha

On the 11th Day of Christmas: Trust

Trust. We can wonder because we can trust. People tend to be kind of needy, and that’s okay. When we need others we learn to trust and be trustworthy in our relationship building. We learn to love more. We learn to have faith in each other. We cultivate magnetic attractions to good intention.

How is trust an Aloha virtue for you?

One of the more frequent questions I have received about Managing with Aloha over the years, is why trust was not included among my 19 values within the philosophy. Trust is certainly there, for it is essential in a healthy work culture. Trust is critical for teams to be productive yet innovative too, secure enough to experiment, take risks, and embrace change when few variables are yet known.

However I have always thought of trust as a result of other values being in play: I define values as predictable patterns of behavior, as close to innate as becomes possible. We “value it,” aspire to it, and may work on it constantly, but those things don’t make it an inherent value woven into our being, and here is another key: We don’t give it unconditionally. Normally, others have to earn it from us. Thus in my language of intention, trust is very much a virtue.

Postscript:
The series starts here: In Keeping with our December Tradition: Twelve Aloha Virtues

1. On the 1st Day of Christmas: Prayer
2. On the 2nd Day of Christmas: Vitality
3. On the 3rd Day of Christmas: Grace
4. On the 4th Day of Christmas: Peace
5. On the 5th Day of Christmas: Wonder
6. On the 6th Day of Christmas: Gratitude
7. On the 7th Day of Christmas: Humor
8. On the 8th Day of Christmas: Joy
9. On the 9th Day of Christmas: Hope
10. On the 10th Day of Christmas: Freedom