He was kicked out of school and sent to El Internado México, located in Tlalpan, south of Mexico City.

A poor student, a brash, cynical, and very rebellious, Tomás enjoyed challenging authority. “Conflict is where he stands,” his teachers would say. He was grounded at home. He was expelled from high school several times, and while still in school, he spent a good portion of each month in the principal's office. No teacher could stand him.

Graham Green said that if we knew the ultimate "why" of things, we would have compassion even for the stars. This phrase is relevant because the torment of listening to their parents' arguments made Tomás and his younger brother want to run away from home. So the news of the boarding school, far from distressing him, was a relief to him.

There he found something that would change his life completely: a sensitive director of the Marist boarding school, who ignored the label "unbearable" that Tomás carried with him. By admitting him, she gave him one of the greatest gifts any human being can receive: she trusted him. Yes, despite everything Don Gregorio Torres had heard about the young man and the warnings about his rebelliousness, Don Goyo—as the students called him—decided to give him a vote of confidence.

 What motivated me to write about this topic is that, according to Tomás—who is now a father and a highly successful businessman—this Marist never verbally expressed that vow to him. He took it for granted. “The way and respect with which he treated me, the energy and trust implicit in every order I received from him, pressed an internal button within me to not fail. Without hesitation, I felt compelled to reciprocate, to bring out the best in myself,” says Tomás, and continues: “My life changed completely. I discovered the possibility of finding abilities within myself that I didn't even know I had. His trust reaffirmed me, challenged me to be better.” He adds: “All my life I had carried the label of ‘the troublemaker’ and I had believed it. Don Goyo changed that perception. Years later, I ran into him and had the great pleasure of thanking him for what he had done for me. But he didn't remember…”

With trust everything is possible

Forget the powers of superheroes. If these impress us, it's because we haven't fully understood the power of a vote of confidence: where you place your trust, power is born. A power to summon the best in others. A power that transcends their fears and gives them access to the supreme part of themselves. A power that grants them a pair of wings to be who they truly want or dream of being. It's like a miracle that proves these exist.

Plus, the benefit is mutual: your power, curiously, is my power. If I elevate you, I elevate myself as a person, and a chain is created. Giving and receiving trust allows you to open yourself to vulnerability, which means having faith that the other will not let you down.

It would be good to review our lives for a moment and ask yourself: "In a relationship, in a project, in the exchange with my child, where is my trust? Where is the power I have to transform that person—young or old—that project, that relationship, or myself?"

As human beings, we have a responsibility; in every relationship, we learn through fear or love. Trust is derived from love; it is the cornerstone of self-esteem and the glue of any exchange, whether in a couple's life, between a parent and child, between friends or siblings, even in the most adverse or challenging situations.

Do you have an unbearable person in your life? If so, give them the power of your trust.