Episode #43 Kiss Gossip Goodbye

Three Problems

• It is easier to tell others about our conflicts than it is to lean into difficult conversations to address those conflicts.
• Engaging in gossip breeds distrust because it causes others to wonder whether we gossip about them too.
• Everyone who participates in gossip is in that moment hoping that nobody is gossiping about them.

Three Principles

• There is nothing that shapes our character and our reputation so much as the words that we speak.
• We are most likely to gossip about those of whom we are jealous.
• The three root causes of gossip are the pursuit of community, the trap of comparison, and the existence of cowardice.

Three Practices

• When you find yourself engaging in gossip, ask yourself, “What is my motivation in saying this?”
• Whenever you lower your voice to share a detail about another person, take it step further and stop talking right then and there.
• When you are on the receiving end of gossip, ask the question, “Have you talked to them about this yet?”