More on Trust Accounts

Covey (2006) talks about trust accounts. He compares it to a checking or savings account. You make deposits by behaving in a trustworthy manner, withdrawals by blowing it. The balance in the account is a measure of how trustworthy you are.

A trust account is kind of like a savings account. It earns interest and has ripple effects that improve other areas of your life.

But soon the analogy breaks down. Savings accounts can increase without limit. You can only put so much in a trust account.

A trust account is more like the gas tank of a car. You can only put so much in it. You have to put gas in it every so often to keep it running, but you can only fill it up to the top. Top it off, we used to say. If you have a 12-gallon tank, you can't put 13 gallons in it.

Same with trust accounts. You can only have so much in them. Tiger Woods could be seen as perfect, but not more than perfect. You can trust somebody a lot, but not trust them more than a lot.

Also, you have to keep your trust account full by being trustworthy all the time. One little break in it, you've made a withdrawal. And if you use up all your gas and don't put anymore in, your car won't go. A car that won't go is worth nothing as a way of getting around.

Tiger has made a significant withdrawal. But will that trust be restored over time? We'll see what this story brings us. If it turns up, for example, that he's been abusing his kids and that he's been taking performance-enhancing drugs, and he pulls an OJ Simpson, then his trust account will be forever closed out.

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