You May Label it Gossip, Someone Else May Label it Slander

There is a saying  . . . "Those who gossip with you will surely gossip about you."

Yes, we've all been guilty of it at one time or another. Knowing some interesting piece of information about someone else can sometimes just get the best of us. We think very little before passing the information on and in a split second we may have contributed to the heartache, pain or malicious slander of another.

When you hear the word gossip, do images of certain individuals pop up in your mind? Rarely do people think about the reputation they gain from being a gossip and the personal and professional damage they'll sustain from the reputation.

Those who have a reputation as a gossip will have a hard time gaining the trust of co-workers, leaders, and subordinates. Depending on the extent of their reptuation, it can also limit their ability to network in professional circles.

People have a fantastic ability to disguise gossip as concern, interest, and prayer requests. If a conversation contains any of the phrases below, a red flag should go up:

•  "She told me not to tell anyone, but I know you will keep it between us . . . " - if everyone who hears the news shares it with just one person, the news will be around town in no time

• "I have a hard time believing that [insert name here] would do something like that."- if it seems out of character then maybe you don't need to give merit to it by passing the information along, chances are it isn't the truth

• "Did you hear the latest about [insert name here]? Do you think it is true?" - True or not, you just planted the seed of possibility in another's mind. Depending upon the nature of the situation you may have just significantly hurt the reputation of the person you were gossiping about.

• "I know I can trust you not to say anything."

Those who have a reptuation as a gossip may feel some isolation. Once labeled a gossip, an individual will have a hard time finding a friend to go to lunch with, will receive few social invitations, and will find conversations with co-workers are limited to strictly business or superfluous weather discussions.

Give some thought to the information you choose to share with others. Even better, don't allow yourself to be in a position to hear gossip. Believe it or not, you can put a stop to gossip by calling people on it. If the information a person is about to share begins with some of the phrases above, stop the person before they share the information by telling them you'd rather not hear it. With a little repetition, you will find people no longer will seek you out to share information. It can be a beautiful thing!