Tell The Truth Faster

This next article is part of an ongoing series here at TSB Magazine called The Success Principles. The series is based on the 64 principles laid out by Jack Canfield in his course of the same name. If you're new, I always suggest starting any series from the beginning.

Principle 50:Tell the Truth Faster

Lets face it; the truth can be uncomfortable.? The truth can expose our weaknesses.? The truth can be embarrassing, shameful, and damaging.? It can also make other people angry, sad, or disappointed.? This is why it is no surprise that we hide from the truth so often.

But there is a secret that most successful people know? the truth will set you free.

Last week Alex Rodriguez owned up to the truth.? I don’t think it was so much because Alex is full of integrity.? I think it is because he watched two completely opposite examples of how you can deal with the truth.

Several months ago, Rodriguez watched former teammates Andy Pettite and Roger Clemens both deal with the idea of telling the truth in completely different ways.

Clemens avoided the truth at all costs.? He held press conferences, filed defamations suits, and passed blame onto his wife.? To this day Clemens is still haunted by the truth, and has likely lost all respect of his peers, fans, and media.

On the other hand, when faced with truth, Petite chose to deal with things as they were, not as he hoped other people would believe they were.? He owned up to what he did.? He apologized.? And in essence, “the truth set him free.”

It takes massive amounts of energy to hide from the truth.? It corrupts your thinking.? And it hoards your time. When you deal with the truth, your free to move on with your life and make the necessary improvements and adjustments to continue growing.

What Do You Need To Share

In every area of our lives, the three things that most need to be shared are resentments that have built up, the unmet needs and demands that underlie those resentments, and appreciations.

If you find that you’re holding a resentment towards someone, it is because you desire something from them that you’re not receiving.? The first thing you need to do is ask yourself “What is it that I am wanting from him that I am not getting?” And then make the commitment to at least ask for it. At worst you will get a no. You might just get a yes.? But at least the request will be out in the open.

Too many of us fear hurting someone else’s feeling so much, or putting them on the spot, that we damage our selves in the process.? When the truth is the most uncomfortable, it often the time that it needs to be told the most.

There’s no perfect time to tell the truth

I think we’ve all been guilty of this? We continue to wait for just the right moment to tell the truth.? Whether we needed to tell a girlfriend we were unfaithful, a friend we smashed his car, or a parent that we failed a class.? If you wondering “when is the right time” then it is probably already the right time.

A funny thing happens as you get more comfortable announcing the truth sooner.? You become to be viewed as a man who is authentic.? People will know that what they see is what they get. And they will respect you for your ability to speak your mind.