The Next Time They Tell You the Truth

The Next Time They Tell You the Truth

My daughter was going out with her boyfriend.
Before they left, I told them there was beer in the house if they wanted one.
My daughter looked at me and said:
“He’s not going to drink with you.”

It made me smile.
Not because of the beer.
Because she told me exactly what she thought.
There are moments when someone gives us a truth we may not particularly like.

A child.
A partner.
A colleague.
Someone on our team.

And without realizing it, our reaction teaches them something.

If we argue, become defensive, punish the honesty, or make the moment uncomfortable, we may still get the answer we wanted.

But perhaps only once.

Because people learn very quickly which truths are safe to tell us.

This happens at home.
It happens at work.
And it happens in organizations that say:
“My door is always open.”

The door may indeed be open.

The more important question is what happens when someone walks through it and says something we would rather not hear.

Because the next time people tell you the truth may depend on what you did the last time they did.