🧠 Weekly Mind Sweep #137 | Manage Your Mind| Trust

August 20, 2024 Jamie Chapman

🎬 Rather watch or listen instead of read? Now you can!

It's Brain Geek Week!

I've spent my week diving into the neuroscience of trust and returned from my quest to share what I have learned! Spoiler alert.

Trust is built into our DNA.

But don't run away too fast. Having your trust betrayed can short-circuit your neurobiology and send you into a tailspin of mistrust.

So what is an entrepreneur to do?

Keep reading; we've got some brain science to unpack. And you won't believe it, but last month's topic of bias peeks its way into our conversation!

Ok, first, let's talk DNA.

"Genes play a key role in trust. Genetic factors account for approximately 33% of the variation in trust levels between individuals, highlighting the heritable nature of this crucial social trait. (as demonstrated by comparing identical and fraternal twins.)" [1]

Let me inject a bit more science about twins since they are near and dear to my personal experience:

Identical twins share 100% of their genes.
Fraternal twins share, on average, 50% of their genes.

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But what if you aren't naturally trusting? How can you cultivate trust in your relationships?

Your DNA and infant experience are critical to your brain development; then mix in environmental factors such as "what happened to you," society, childhood experiences, and life experiences, and you can begin to understand just how unique everyone's experiences are and how they contribute to the person you are today. [2]

You're walking around with your unique brain soup!

Now, take your brain soup and make contact with another human and all their brain soup. In 30 milliseconds, which is less than 1/10 of a second, you decide how trustworthy an individual looks. [3]

Oh, hello, bias! We still remember you! [4]

To add another layer of complexity, there's also stuff happening on the outside of our brains, like where we are, what environment we're in, do we feel safe, and WOAH!! (Do you see why I'm so fascinated with the human brain?!)

So, what IS happening inside our brain?

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Let's touch on 3 areas identified when trust is and isn't present.

Ventral Striatum - nestled deep in the middle of the brain and is part of the limbic brain areas involved in motivational and emotional processing.
Medial Prefrontal Cortex - which plays essential roles in the cognitive process, regulation of emotion, motivation, and sociability.
Amygdala - a major processing center for emotions.

When you interact with someone you trust, the activity in your ventral striatum and medial prefrontal cortex is increased, and the amygdala activity is decreased.

The ventral striatum is a key pathway in human reward processing and positive emotions, which explains why we can fall into trusting even outside of logic. [6]

When amygdala activity decreases, your brain is freed up for better things, like creativity, planning, and decision-making!

But wait, there is more!

Showing people you trust them raises oxytocin levels in their brains, which allows them to show more trust in you, which then increases your oxytocin levels. [6]

Everyone is in an oxytocin brain love soup!

When humans don't know much about each other and are meeting for the first time, the one little decision to proceed with vulnerability and trust can make a major impact on the relationship in the future.

Building trust takes time, but losing it can happen in an instant.

If our brain is wired for trust and social connection, what happens when we experience mistrust?

Once bitten, twice shy. [7]

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When we experience a betrayal, our amygdala kicks into high gear, and we make fear-based decisions.

In this state, we create mental maps of mistrust, which becomes our "new normal," even if it's not reality. This causes lost opportunities, partnerships, and collaborations. [8]

More importantly, it affects our ability to build healthy relationships. [9]

Over the last decade, science has shown us that our brains are capable of neuroplasticity! We're not stuck with these mental maps of our past experiences. Just because we have an instinct not to trust someone, we don't have to succumb to that instinct.

We are not hardwired.

You can practice the power of the pause and consider whether you are approaching new situations with too much of an amygdala-driven perspective.

You may overestimate the risk and underestimate the benefit.

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In business, whether you offer services or products, success relies on collaboration. Trust is the foundation of these partnerships. Each interaction can strengthen the bond, leading to mutual growth and success.

Let's use our new understanding of trust, reflect on our experiences, and approach trust with intention.

My question for you this week is:

Can you recall a time when trust OR lack of trust impacted a business decision or personal relationship?

Reply and share with me!

The answers you need for your business are already within you. If you’d like support in identifying them and building a business you are proud of, I’m here to help.