--- title: The 4 Traits That All Trustworthy People Share - InsNerds.com description: "Доверяй, но проверяй - Russian proverb meaning \"trust but verify\" Trust It is such a simple word. Or is it? When asked to define it, nearly anyone I ask about it, mentions honesty as a key word in the definition. And while honest is a key ingredient in being trustworthy, it only scratches the" --- [Insurance Nerds - Insuring Tomorrow ](https://insnerds.com/insights) # [The 4 Traits That All Trustworthy People Share - InsNerds.com](https://insnerds.com/insights/4-traits-trustworthy-people-share) Written by [Nicholas Lamparelli](https://insnerds.com/insights/author/nicholas-lamparelli) | Jan 4, 2017 5:00:00 AM # The 4 Traits That All Trustworthy People Share by Nicholas Lamparelli [Доверяй, но проверяй](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trust,_but_verify) – Russian proverb meaning “trust but verify”   ## Trust It is such a simple word. Or is it? When asked to define it, nearly anyone I ask about it, mentions honesty as a key word in the definition. And while honest is a key ingredient in being trustworthy, it only scratches the surface of how complicated that simple word is. Without trust, you won’t make the sale, get the promotion or bonus, find your true love or be believed if you are accused of something you didn’t do. Trustworthy people though get the benefit of the doubt.   How is it that [Warren Buffet](https://insnerds.com/learned-dinner-warren-buffett/) can do [ billion dollar deals on the promise of his word ](http://blogs.wsj.com/deals/2012/05/23/buffett-took-20-minutes-to-decide-on-goldman-deal-then-went-to-dairy-queen/)? Trust. What was one of the principal reasons Hillary Clinton struggled with the electorate? Trust. What is the main problem President-elect Donald Trump is already having before he is even inaugurated? TRUST! In [The Speed of Trust](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1416549005/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=insn-20&camp=1789&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=1416549005&linkId=1c62cca6825a1f643f27c81a875ede6a), author Stephen MR Covey (the son of legendary author [Stephen Covey](https://www.stephencovey.com/about/about.php)) has written the bible of understanding trust. This is a book that should not be read… it should be studied. As you think about 2017 and as you build your [Career Capital ](https://insnerds.com/so-good-cant-ignore-you/), perhaps the greatest rare and valuable asset you can acquire, is to become trustworthy.   ## **TRAIT 1 – INTEGRITY** Are you honest? Do you “walk your talk”? Do you have the courage to live your life in accordance with your values? Do you say one thing and do another? Mr. Covey believes that most failures in trust are due to violations  in  our integrity.   ## **T****RAIT 2 – INTENT** What is your agenda? Are you hiding it from the people you deal with? Are you transparent? Are you in your current job giving it your all or planning your next move? Hidden agendas (even if only suspected) kills trust.     ## **TRAIT 3 – CAPABILITIES** Do you have the talent and skills to get the job done? Would you trust your family doctor to perform brain surgery on you? Are you conscientiously building your skillset or are you allowing your abilities to whither?   ## **TRAIT 4 – RESULTS** Do you have a track record of performance to back you up? Have you been able to promise and deliver? Are you taking credit for results generated by someone else (back to integrity)? Do you wish to be instantly “trustworthy”? Get results! But a warning here, being trustworthy is a composition of all 4 traits. Lacking even one of these traits will sabotage your trustworthiness in the long-run. As an example of how results by themselves don’t equate to trustworthiness, consider [ Al “Chainsaw” Dunlap ](http://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,2025898_2025900_2026107,00.html) . Al Dunlap got results. Al was well known for turning around struggling companies. Al developed a reputation of taking a chainsaw (hence the nickname) to companies, with huge layoffs and streamlining. He got “results” in that he was able to get struggling companies back to profitability. But what is now well known is that he also gutted the culture and reputation of those companies as well. When you take a chainsaw to a tree, what’s left is not a tree any longer.     ## **SUMMARY** Trustworthiness is your most prized asset. Be honest and transparent, be skillful and use those skills to get results. As you think about building your Career Capital, make trustworthiness the central foundation of your quest.   #### **ADDITIONAL RESOURCES**   - Speed of Trust website: [  http://goo.gl/oHKKIg](http://goo.gl/oHKKIg) - Slideshare: - - [http://goo.gl/9YbErM](http://goo.gl/9YbErM) - [http://goo.gl/iNE7bh](http://goo.gl/iNE7bh) - Twitter: [ https://twitter.com/StephenMRCovey](https://twitter.com/StephenMRCovey) - Book Reviews: [ http://goo.gl/osnXKT](http://goo.gl/osnXKT) - Book Summary: [ https://www.cu.edu/sites/default/files/ExecTrust.pdf](https://www.cu.edu/sites/default/files/ExecTrust.pdf) - Summary of Quotes: [ http://goo.gl/LIJXl6](http://goo.gl/LIJXl6)   ### About Nicholas Lamparelli Nick Lamparelli is a 20+ year veteran of the insurance wars. He has a unique vantage point on the insurance industry. From selling home & auto insurance, helping companies with commercial insurance, to being an underwriter with an excess & surplus lines wholesaler to catastrophe modeling Nick has wide experience in the industry. Over past 10 years, Nick has been focused on the insurance analytics of natural catastrophes and big data. Nick serves as our Chief Evangelist. - ##### [ Nicholas Lamparelli](https://insnerds.com/author/nick-lamparelli/) + posts Nick Lamparelli is a 20+ year veteran of the insurance wars. He has a unique vantage point on the insurance industry. From selling home & auto insurance, helping companies with commercial insurance, to being an underwriter with an excess & surplus lines wholesaler to catastrophe modeling Nick has wide experience in the industry. Over past 10 years, Nick has been focused on the insurance analytics of natural catastrophes and big data. Nick serves as our Chief Evangelist. - ** [From Teacher to Tech: How SettleStream Cuts Litigation Time and Costs - A Discussion with Chrysa Jones, COO](https://insnerds.com/from-teacher-to-tech-how-settlestream-cuts-litigation-time-and-costs-a-discussion-with-chrysa-jones-coo/) - ** [My Battle With Sleep Demons (and How I Overcame It 🤞)](https://insnerds.com/my-battle-with-sleep-demons-and-how-i-overcame-it-%f0%9f%a4%9e/) - ** [Exploring the History of Citizens Insurance Company of Florida: From Inception to Present - AoB Podcast](https://insnerds.com/20638-2/) - ** [The Importance of Security in Workflow For Insurance Agents & Brokers (AoB Podcast with Taylor Pascoe of ShareFile)](https://insnerds.com/the-importance-of-security-in-workflow-for-insurance-agents-brokers-aob-podcast-with-taylor-pascoe-of-sharefile/) ### Related Posts - [What We Learned at Dinner with Warren Buffett](https://insnerds.com/learned-dinner-warren-buffett/) Recently, Carly and Tony received an amazing email from Warren Buffett, the Oracle of Omaha… - [What we Learned at Dinner with Warren Buffett - Part 2](https://insnerds.com/learned-dinner-warren-buffett-part-2/) If you read our most recent article, “What we Learned at Dinner with Warren Buffet,” you’ll… - [Warren Buffett's Tips for Success in the Insurance Industry](https://insnerds.com/warren-buffetts-tips-success-insurance-industry/) This is the third article in this series. You can read the other two parts… [**Share81](https://www.linkedin.com/cws/share?url=https%3A%2F%2Finsnerds.com%2F4-traits-trustworthy-people-share%2F%3Futm_source%3Dlinkedin%26utm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_campaign%3DSocialWarfare) [**Tweet130](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=The+4+Traits+That+All+Trustworthy+People+Share&url=https%3A%2F%2Finsnerds.com%2F4-traits-trustworthy-people-share%2F%3Futm_source%3Dtwitter%26utm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_campaign%3DSocialWarfare&via=InsNerds) [**Share](https://www.facebook.com/share.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Finsnerds.com%2F4-traits-trustworthy-people-share%2F%3Futm_source%3Dfacebook%26utm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_campaign%3DSocialWarfare) [**Reddit](https://www.reddit.com/submit?url=https%3A%2F%2Finsnerds.com%2F4-traits-trustworthy-people-share%2F%3Futm_source%3Dreddit%26utm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_campaign%3DSocialWarfare) [**Email](mailto:?subject=The%204%20Traits%20That%20All%20Trustworthy%20People%20Share&body=%D0%94%D0%BE%D0%B2%D0%B5%D1%80%D1%8F%D0%B9%2C%20%D0%BD%D0%BE%20%D0%BF%D1%80%D0%BE%D0%B2%D0%B5%D1%80%D1%8F%D0%B9%20-%20Russian%20proverb%20meaning%20%22trust%20but%20verify%22%20%26nbsp%3B%20Trust%20It%20is%20such%20a%20simple%20word.%20Or%20is%20it%3F%20When%20asked%20to%20define%20it%2C%20nearly%20anyone%20I%20ask%20about%20it%2C%20mentions%20honesty%20as%20a%20key%20word%20in%20the%20definition.%20And%20while%20honest%20is%20a%20key%20ingredient%20in%20being%20trustworthy%2C%20it%20only%20scratches%20the%0D%0A%0D%0ARead%20More%20Here:%20%20https%3A%2F%2Finsnerds.com%2F4-traits-trustworthy-people-share%2F%3Futm_source%3Demail%26utm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_campaign%3DSocialWarfare) 211 Shares Categories [Career](https://insnerds.com/category/career/), [Early Career](https://insnerds.com/category/career/early-career/) Tags [Psychology](https://insnerds.com/tag/psychology/) [Your New Year’s Resolution: Be So Good They Can’t Ignore You](https://insnerds.com/so-good-cant-ignore-you/) [The Smart Way to Deal with Recruiters](https://insnerds.com/smart-way-deal-recruiters/) [View full post](https://insnerds.com/insights/4-traits-trustworthy-people-share) ```json { "@context" : "http://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Nicholas Lamparelli" }, "dateModified" : "2025-01-03T02:08:43.645Z", "datePublished" : "2017-01-04T05:00:00Z", "headline" : "The 4 Traits That All Trustworthy People Share", "image" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "height" : 100, "url" : "https://47532799.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/47532799/Imported_Blog_Media/Lamparelli-100x100-Jan-03-2025-02-07-01-9677-AM.jpg", "width" : 100 }, "mainEntityOfPage" : "https://insnerds.com/insights/4-traits-trustworthy-people-share", "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "height" : 60.0, "url" : "https://47532799.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/47532799/logo-horizonatl.jpg", "width" : 139.38907 }, "name" : "Insurance Nerds " } } ```