By Royane Real

Do you like to gossip?  Many of us love to gossip, even though we know in the back of our minds that we shouldn't be doing it.

Gossiping puts us into kind of a conundrum, doesn’t it? On the one hand, we know we aren’t supposed to gossip about others in conversation.  It’s not nice.

And on the other hand, gossiping with our friends can be kind of addictive.  We can actually feel good when we are putting somebody else down, for a while at least.  We can feel powerful because we have a secret.  We feel included because we are sharing secrets with a chosen few people who seem to be hanging on our every word.  We have a chance to get back in secret at people we might not like or people we feel angry with.

So, is gossip really all that bad? 

The truth about gossip is that it can range from being very mild to very destructive.  And you can’t always tell what the long term repercussions of any gossip will be.

When you repeat gossip that you have heard from others, you don’t necessarily know if it’s true.  You may be simply repeating a vicious lie that someone else dreamed up to destroy somebody’s reputation.

If you repeat something you know is true, but that you were supposed to keep secret, it really shows that you can’t be trusted.  Sure, you may feel powerful for a while with this secret information that you are repeating to your own closest friends, but you can’t really control where that information is going to end up.  You can eventually destroy your own reputation when people decide you can’t be a reliable friend.  You may lose some of your friends.

Not all gossip is harmful and destructive.  Sometimes we talk about others because we are simply trying to get to the bottom of somebody else’s puzzling behavior. By gossiping about them we are really trying to understand them.

But sometimes we are using gossip deliberately to be hurtful.  Even if the topic of the gossip is accurate, the information can in some cases destroy friendships, marriages and careers.

Perhaps the best question to ask yourself when you are tempted to gossip, is “Would I really want someone to be saying this about me?”

(The above introductory comments were written by Royane Real )

Learn to Be Popular - even if You're Shy and Lonely!

By Royane Real

Do you ever with you had a better social life?  Are you tired of being lonely?  Perhaps you suffer from shyness and you wish you could learn how to be outgoing and popular.

My popular book “Your Guide to Finding Friends, Making Friends and Keeping Friends”  will teach you everything you need to know about how to make friends.  Where to find them.  How to start up conversations with people you don't know very well.  How to get over your shyness.

You'll learn how to keep a conversation going.  You'll find out what to do to keep a friendship strong and make it last.  

Isn't it time to stop being on the outside looking in?  Now is the time and here is your opportunity to change your life from one of being lonely to one of being popular. 

Testimonial from a happy reader :

"Some other authors will charge you way more for self help programs that won't be written as good as this one, but this one is packed with information and is worth every penny." Testimonial by Niko Sekuloski, Detroit

Learn more about this exciting book that can change your life forever  “Your Guide to Finding Friends, Making Friends and Keeping Friends” at  http://www.lulu.com/real     

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