Working through a problem with a 3rd party is one thing. Speaking badly about another person simply because you don’t like them is something else entirely.
If you wouldn’t say it to the person you’re speaking about, then perhaps it’s not the sort of thing you should be saying to someone else in their absence.
And if you’re not the kind of person who would stick up for a friend being spoken poorly of when they’re not present, then perhaps it’s time to consider what it means to be a friend.
Real friends may give each other shit — and often do — but they also don’t let others speak poorly of their friends in their absence.
Having integrity means sticking up for what you believe in even when it isn’t easy. And sometimes this means refusing to take part in conversations aimed at putting people down.
Learn to let people make up their own minds about others without trying to bond by creating a common enemy.
Related:
- Talking shit
- Liar liar
- Integrity isn’t only for when life is easy
- Complaining
- An honest enemy is better than a false friend
- Help stamp out rampant complaining.
- Relations & relationships
