Trust is the cornerstone of any strong relationship and can take years to build. However, trust can be broken instantly with just a few careless actions. As such, knowing what can damage trust to protect and nurture the relationships we value is essential. This blog post will explore what these things are so that you can better understand how to keep trust alive in your life.

Avoid doing things that can destroy trust.

Trust is essential in maintaining good relationships with people. We work hard to build it by consistently doing good deeds, keeping our word, and ensuring you tell the truth at all times, if possible. When trust is created, it assures others that we can do what we say, be reliable during times of need, and make others see us in a more positive light.

Building trust is no walk in the park, but breaking it can be. Trust can be compared to a piece of glass that might have taken careful effort to create and make beautiful, but one big mistake or gradual misgivings can easily shatter it. Trust is delicate, and if we value our relationships, we should do our best not to do things that can break people's trust in us. The following are some of the actions and behaviors that can have a negative impact on others' trust in us, and it will be best to do something to prevent them from happening or change our dishonest habits if we have them.

1. Lying

Anything dishonest is an excellent way to break others' trust in us, and lying is perhaps the most basic and number one thing that can do it. But, unfortunately, lying is a simple action that many of us do, maybe even a habit for some of us. This is because lies distort or hide the truth. Lying creates trust issues, especially if done for a prolonged period. Just imagine the reaction of someone who believes a particular fact only to discover much later that it was a lie. The commitment, effort, and time one has built up trusting something can shatter when the lies are exposed. The person who does the lies will receive a significant blow to their reputation when people discover their lies. A single or few instances of lying creates distrust; habitual lying or covering up something important for a long time can end relationships.

2. Being too secretive

Keeping secrets is something that we may like to do. Every one of us has a secret that we don't want others to know, and we may also like to entrust some of our secrets to our closest and most trusted friends and other members of our inner circle. Secrets differ from lies in that lies create false truths about something, while secrets only keep others from knowing the truth, and you may or may not lie to cover for something. Still, when somebody becomes too secretive about various things or keeps many secrets that even family members or your significant other doesn't know, it can make others suspicious of you. To make others more trusting and easily feel comfortable with you, it won't hurt to be open about your feelings sometimes and share some intimate details with the most important people in your life.

3. Breaking promises

Promises can be quickly made, but committing to them and ensuring you fulfill them can be challenging. The moment they get broken, it creates a feeling of distrust in the person you made a promise with, and they may find it hard to rely on you next time. When you lack self-awareness in what you say, you may suddenly say something that makes others expect something from you, even if you don't intend to make a promise, but your words may make it sound like you did. We should be mindful and careful about what we say and ensure we can fulfill what we promise to others to maintain a healthy relationship with them.

4. Being a hypocrite

A hypocrite is a person that puts up appearances or says something but acts contrary to the image they make and what they say; in other words, they are lying about the impression they are projecting. They may appear as the nicest person you have ever met, but you may discover they are doing something unpleasant behind the scenes. What they do is against what they talk about, so it can be expected for people to be wary of such people because we may never know who we are facing is the real person we thought to be.

5. Using dirty tactics and cheating

When a person uses underhanded methods and cheats their way to gain things, it shows literal dishonesty in front of people who witness such acts. Nothing can be more annoying than dealing with cheaters who rise above you while you do honest means of achieving the same thing. It isn't easy to respect such people. You will most likely not entrust someone that cheats to be a leader, and entrusting them to do something important may get you into trouble when they annoy or hurt others along the way to achieving something.

6. Manipulating others for your gain

Some people can be manipulative and won't hesitate to use others to gain something. They have this annoying trait of acting friendly and positive toward someone they want to use. Once they get what they want, they will leave you and avoid taking responsibility for any damage they may cause to your reputation and well-being. We should avoid such unruly behavior and be wary of those with a history of doing this to others.

7. Not taking responsibility for your actions

When something goes wrong, and you are clearly at fault, not owning up to what you did, and blaming others, is not only an act of immaturity but also a way of showing people you can't be trusted. Other team members in a group project may hesitate to work with you or assign a task if they know you have such behavior. Lack of accountability shows you can be unreliable, affecting trust in a relationship.

8. Backstabbing

Backstabbing is saying something bad against someone when they are not present or have their backs turned around you. It is a surefire way to make someone angry and distrust you if they discover you are saying unpleasant things about them behind their backs, which they may discover if they hear from others. It is an act of betrayal because someone may have trusted you well and thought of you as a friend, only to discover that is not the case because they find out you are saying something that impacts trust from behind them.

Trust is essential in a healthy relationship.

When it comes to breaking trust, anything that involves emotional and literal dishonesty is almost guaranteed to do it. We say almost because some people may be more forgiving than others and give others several chances before they say, "That's it, I'm done with you." We can be more tolerant of people who have close ties with us, such as family members, spouses, and close friends. For others, though, that may not be the case. One instance of dishonesty or betrayal can be enough to shatter one's trust in another or through continuous acts of dishonesty that pile up over time. Sometimes, we may not even be aware that some of our actions can make others distrust us.

Trust is essential to maintaining good relationships between people in society. Without it, we may find it challenging to entrust some of the things we need to do to others, and it can be hard to feel safe. That's why we should do our best not to break people's trust, as it can be challenging to build it. Things may never be the same once it is damaged.