Whichever strategy one chooses to deploy, the process of integration helps to further enhance (distill) the Essence of Trust. Trust becomes more secure and capable of adjusting to shifting VUCA-Plus circumstances because it contains many interwoven elements. The Essence of Trust involves not just the dynamic tension between home and quest. The Essence of Trust also involves the integration of all aspects of Trust and the ultimate unity to be found in this Essence. As in the case of all distillations the pure Essence of the distilled elixir remains to be savored and celebrated. When full integration occurs, the Essence of Trust gains further depth and becomes much richer. It is to this deepening of Trust that I turn in presenting the final section of this third essay concerning the search for Essence.
The Nature of Trust (and Mistrust)
Up to this point, I have concentrated on the dynamics of trust—the push and pull between S² (Home) and O² (Quest)–two polarities of Trust. I have represented these two polarities on a horizonal plain with the movement between them being represented by figure 8. I am now going to move from the horizonal dimension to a vertical dimension. I will now push down to a deeper level regarding the fundamental nature of Trust.
Four Facets
Any Essence resides ultimately in both the tension that exists between different aspects of this Essence and in the depth of its etiology and structure (facets). I begin this exploration by returning to the distinction I drew in one of my previous essays on Essence (Bergquist, 2024c) between four facets concerning the viewpoint being taken (in this case viewpoint regarding Trust), and the facets I identified at the start of this essay concerning the representation of Trust (competence, intention and perspective).
What would be differing viewpoints regarding Trust? First, there is an appreciative facet (what I call the zero-order viewpoint). We assume that Trust already (and perhaps always) exists in the particular system we are examining. We have only to uncover (appreciate) this Trust and engage our world and our interpersonal relationships with the assumption that Trust exists in this world and relationship.
A first-order viewpoint (second facet) exists when we begin with the assumption that Trust can be established and maintained through enactment of simple measures that establish Trust. For instance, Trust in an enduring intimate relationship can be maintained when both members of the couple offer small “bids” (expressions of gratitude, assisting one another, preparing a special meal, etc.) (Bergquist, 2023).
The third facet directs us to an assumption that Trust is not easily won. We must engage a second-order viewpoint. Our relationship with the world or with another person in our life must be altered in a significant manner. We must engage in a transformative process. This might mean that we engage in a “remarriage”—with fundamental changes being established in our relationship with an intimate partner (Bergquist, 2023). We may similarly engage in a “remarriage” with our organization or with our way of being with many other people in our life.
Finally, there is a fourth facet that brings us to a realization that Trust simply does not exist in the environment where we now work or where we now establish important relationships in our life. This third-order viewpoint leads to moving to another location, getting a divorce, finding a safe place to renew ourselves, or simply turning away from a VUCA-Plus world that requires multiple demands of Trust.
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