Methods for Refusing Gossip

Video Transcript

"Alright, continuing on about gossip, I ended the last clip by telling you 'don't do it.' So you're saying to yourself well, how do I not do it? How do I not gossip when everybody at work is gossiping? Or if I don't gossip, I won't be in the 'in' group. Well, everybody wants to be in the 'in' group, and I understand that, so the key to not gossiping is being diplomatic in your refusal to participate in the gossip, and you have several ways in which you can do this. If you are a pretty direct, bold person you can simply make a statement, "I don't want to talk about them, they're not here to defend themselves." Okay? If you talk like that, you will get a reputation really quick, that, not to gossip around you, because you don't involve yourself in the gossip. Another thing that you can do if you want to try to stay with a certain group of people, or in an 'in' group, maybe you don't say to them, "I don't want to talk about them, I don't want to gossip, they're not here to defend themselves," but perhaps you can continually change the subject. That's another option that is probably a little subtler than stating to whoever's gossiping that you don't want to talk about that person behind their back, but those are a couple of options. Or you can just not be associated with the gossipers, and that may be the best choice of all."