“Information is ammunition.”

Information is ammunition. Whenever you tell certain people your most personal details in life, they tend to use that information against you and to their advantage whenever things are not going well in the friendship/relationship.

People are unable to harm you verbally, emotionally or financially if they do not have the information to do so in the first place. Maintaining an element of mystery is good for any relationship because it tends to make you and your actions less predictable to other people. Protecting private information about yourself also prevents others from distorting their true image of you.

My daughter, Billie,  had a friend named Sarah that was very intelligent but proceeded to tell everyone in her circle of friends that she felt she had very little sense of direction. From that point on, Sarah's inner circle of friends, labeled her as "the one that you should not ever ask for directions."

Early in these friendships, Sarah divulged information that she felt she was terrible with navigation. Sarah revealed her “inner limp” to her closest friends.

None of Sarah's friends would have ever known or even cared that Sarah did not have a good sense of direction. Sarah exposed her privacy, and ultimately, was labeled by her friends.

Are you able to maintain a healthy element of mystery with friends and family?

Proverbs 2:11
Discretion will protect you, and understanding will guard you.

Evelyn Minton and her daughter, Dr. Billie J. Minton are the authors of the Blue Ridge Tenderpup children's series. These books may be found at the author's website BlueRidgeMoments.com and Amazon.com/Author/drbillieminton