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What You Gain By Not Trying To Gain Anything
Never undermine your values
A few years ago, I made a pact with myself.
I will not lie under any circumstances
That doesn’t mean I’ll tell you the whole truth. You may not want to hear the truth. It may hurt you unnecessarily.
But whatever the topic is, I will not lie to you.
If I feel like I have to lie, I will not respond.
Yes, it does create some awkward interactions, but I would rather have an awkward interaction with you than feel guilty for lying to you.
When I was younger, I told my parents: “I don’t gain a thing by telling the truth”.
And I still think that, in a way. I just don’t look at it like that…
I don’t have to gain anything. I just have to go with my values and make sure I sleep well at night.
It took me some time to get this around my friends’ minds, but you have no idea how pleasant it was when they finally got it.
We were talking about some nonsense, as friends do, and a guy that had just joined our circle asked me a question. I answered and he didn’t believe me and said I had to be lying. I looked dead in his eyes and said “I don’t lie”. He laughed and…