ALERT: Trust Destroys Gratitude

Against whom do you explode when you’ve had a stressful day? Those you trust. From whom do you receive the deepest abuse and emotional scars? Those you trust. Who are the most cautious individuals near you when you launch into something new? Your most trusted inner circle. Who can you call right now and they will do nearly anything for you? Those you trust. When you think of how you are unapproved, not valued enough and taken advantage of, who do you think of? People with whom you have a trust relationship. 

You know…you exhaust yourself and get little or no approval. You stay home and take care of your family and it’s expected. You work out of the home and bring in thousands of dollars per month and get no “thank you” from your spouse or children. Your boss asks and demands, then takes two weeks off and couldn’t care less what you’re left with and when he or she comes back never says, “Thanks!” because, after all, you’re being paid for your job—it’s expected and he trusts you! All these are people you trust and who trust you—at least for now. 

 May I suggest that trust is the enemy of gratitude, and unless we willfully push back against it, we will live in ungrateful trust relationships that will ultimately digress to the hurt and burnout of those in our most valuable network. Handwrite a card to your employees! Handwrite a card to your spouse! Handwrite a card to your mentors! Break the negative cycles of trust that make you an ingrate, and, instead, determine to use your trust relationships as a prompt for your gratitude.

Please pass The Buck to your friends.

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