One of the foundations of a relationship is trust. What is trust? How do you get it? In this podcast, I share with you the number one secret to building trust, what it means and how to apply it.

Welcome back. Today we're talking about trust. How Trust is built, how Trust is broken. And we're going to talk about the one ingredient that really makes all the difference in building real trust. I really love this topic because I love building genuine friendships, genuine connection with people. That's built on real trust. And I'm not going to wait to the end of the video. I'm just going to tell you now the number 1 secret to building trust is vulnerability. Okay? Now, before you just leave and think, "Okay, I've got the answer." Let me give you a brief example of what this means and then  I'll talk about how it really applies to us. Well, think about a dog. My kids love dogs. I wish I could say I love dogs. But I just like them from a distance. I love animals but I don't like to pet them and  have their sneaky breath on me. Okay. Dogs. Dogs are man's best friend. And my kids love dogs. They'll come up, they'll start scratching and tickling and playing. And okay, a dog that  trusts you will be vulnerable. It'll roll over onto its back and allow you to scratches tummy, right? That's an unsafe position. It's a vulnerable position. Now, if a dog does that for the first time and you respect that, you keep the dog safe. You make it a positive experience, then the dog trusts you. The dog will then do that again. But what if the dog went into a vulnerable position and you got mad at the dog. And or you hurt the dog or something like that? You disrespected the dog, however that might work. The dog probably won't make himself vulnerable again. Next time he sees you, he'll... He or she will probably go into a corner or go the other direction or just protect himself. Maybe bark. In relationships, we share our hearts. We open ourselves up and we become vulnerable. And if that vulnerability is respected, if it's a safe environment and it's kept safe or valued. In that moment, we're loved. Then there's trust built. We were vulnerable, we put ourselves in a place of risk. We could get hurt. And either Trust was built or it wasn't, right? Because if we open ourselves up and it gets thrown back in our face. I'm not going to be opening up to that person ever, ever again. So, if you want to build better relationship with people, you want to strengthen that trust, how do you do that? Do you just say, "Hey! Man, when I was little I stole a candy bar from the grocery store." They're going to... Is that being vulnerable? Maybe. But is also beingsilly. The truth about vulnerability is it really is risky. And when you want to strengthen a relationship, you  got to take risks. And when you take those risks and you're kept safe, then trust happens. So, I'm not saying go out there and just  take, start taking tons of risks. Go out there and just be vulnerable all over the place. Because it's going to seem weird. People are going to be weirded out. And it's a little bit too much and it wasn't the right place for you to be open or vulnerable. Don't let people peer into your soul. But if you're having a conversation with somebody and they share something that's personal, like recognize that, acknowledge that. Like, "Wow, thank you for sharing that. That's such a cool story." You know, I had a... I had a situation like that too. You know, you're you're just starting with little increments of being vulnerable. You're sharing pieces of your... You know, here's what often happens. In conversation, 2 people will be talking and while person A is talking, person B is thinking about what they're going to say next. Guess what? If this person shares anything that they're like, "Yeah, I'm sharing something pretty important to me." And then they get a sense that this person's not listening, guess what? That wasn't... That wasn't a good response to my vulnerability. I'm like, you asked me a question. You asked me how was my day and I'm telling you how my day went and yet you're not even listening to me? You're not even giving me that respect? I think your conversation is done. But if somebody asks you, "How was your day?" And then they listen. And they're like, "Wow! That's so cool." Or "Oh, how can I support you? Wow." You know? They're really genuine. They're authentic and really caring about you. Doesn't it make sense that you're going to want to continue having that conversation? What's the purpose of this video? One, I love connection. I love building good friendships. I love relationships and I love trust. I've got a lot of great friends. We have trusting relationships. And this is the secret ingredient. Its vulnerability. And my challenge to you is to pay attention to the vulnerability that people open up to you and to always, always, always respect that. Recognize the courage it takes to do that. Let that be a way of strengthening your relationship. And then on the flip side, I challenge you to be vulnerable as well. Be the real you. Be the authentic you. And in the right moments, open yourself up. Take a risk. Share what's in your heart and the right people will see that. They'll see your heart and they'll love you for it. Thank you for watching. What do you think of this episode? I mean, what do you think of me talking about these type topics on my YouTube channel? Curious to know your thoughts. Share them the comments below. Like it if you did.  subscribe. I'll see you tomorrow.