Why Telling the Truth Makes You Happy

Is lying necessary if it hurts people?

Speaking the truth can benefit you in many ways. Being honest is not simply gurgling out everything you know or suppose, rather, it is tactfully telling the truth in non-injurious manners to prevent harm to others. There are words that describe truth telling in different aspects.

•  Integrity: Doing what you say you will do.
•  Honesty: Being truthful.
•  Truth Telling: Stating a fact.

These differentiations should be considered when we mentally ponder how honest we are being. For centuries, honesty has been associated with morality. Why is this?

Consider this thought experiment:

Kara works for a lawn mowing company in New York. She performs well, and gets promoted from field labor to office work. One day, her boss tells her he thinks someone has stolen from the company.

The truth is, Kara has no idea about the theft. She thinks this over, and answers truthfully. She doesn’t know.

Kara has been honest with her employer. Her boss thinks it is an older worker who has been slacking of lately, and asks Kara to look into it. She agrees to keep her eye on the coworker.

A few days later, her boss checks in with her on the issue, and as she said, she kept track of the coworker’s activities, but saw no signs of theft or like behavior.

Now, let’s consider alternatives to Kara’s actions:

Instead of telling her boss the truth, she shrugged and told him she thought the coworker seemed like the type to steal.

Q. What would Kara’s statement be grounded in? 

A. Her own disapproval of the coworker, rather than any legitimate fact.

In this scenario, Kara did not lie, but she indicated she felt the coworker seemed like the type to engage in self-destructive behaviors.

Let’s conclude with thinking that the coworker is guilty based on the viewpoints of the boss and Kara.

The importance of telling the truth in situations wherein another person may suffer consequences is crucial to the life experiences of everyone. Our responsibility to be truthful is important to the whole, as much as it is to the individual.

We have a choice as to whether or not we explain  our feelings objectively or with bias. Additionally, we may insinuate facts without telling a lie. 

If we look back to the thought experiment, we know by Kara’s boss asking her opinion on the coworker, that he trusts her. If Kara caused the coworker injustice based on her lack of honesty, it might come back to bite her. Either way, Kara impacted the outcome of her coworker’s life experience.

Being truthful means we take into consideration how words and gestures can hurt us as well as others. When we think responsibly before sharing information, it makes us better, happier people.