What I Learned About Trust from the Maasai

Sep 2

SEPTEMBER 3, 2024

The quality of our life and our results is shaped by where we place our trust. We can trust that our lives are working for us or we can trust that our lives are working against us – either way you’ll be right.

Don’t leave trust to default. Choose what you’re placing your trust in or your unconscious will choose it for you.

I spent time with the Maasai while in Tanzania. This particular group was a small tribe of maybe 100 people that made their living from herding goats and cattle. The village amounted to a branch-walled enclosure of about 20 Enkaji, or dung-huts, with multiple tribespeople calling each home. I had the opportunity to spend time with them, sit with their children and elders, and observe how they operated with one another. They were some of the happiest and most grateful people I’ve ever met—especially notable given the little they have..

During a private conversation with the tribe leader, I asked him how they managed to stay so positive and resilient (especially notable with few, if any, material comforts). His answer was a simple but profound Maasai proverb: "Home is not far when you are alive."

At first, I struggled to fully understand, partially lost in translation, but as we kept talking, the deeper meaning became clear. This isn’t just a proverb; they believe they are always where they are meant to be. Better said, they trust where they are.

What I started to understand is that trust isn’t optional for any of us. Where we place our trust is.

We can all trust the negative: this is too hard, the circumstances are against me, I’m not where I’m meant to be.

Or, like the Maasai, trust in the positive: this current situation is perfect, I’m grateful for what’s happening, I am exactly where I am meant to be.

This lesson hit me hard: the experience we have in life (and the results we create) is guided by where we place our trust. The Maasai taught me that when we trust in where we are is perfect – joy and fulfillment naturally follow.

And that's something I can’t stop thinking about.

Key Idea

Trust isn’t optional. What we put our trust in, is. The quality of our life and our results is shaped by where we place our trust. We can trust that our lives are working for us or we can trust that our lives are working against us – either way you’ll be right.

Takeaway

Don’t leave trust to default. Choose what you’re placing your trust in or your unconscious will choose it for you.

Build your Movement

Where are you placing your trust that is working for you? How can you cultivate more of that?