Why Biting Your Tongue Leads to Disaster | The Behavioral Science Guys

Do you have something awkward, uncomfortable, harsh, or embarrassing that you’d like to say, but you’ve kept bottled up for years? Turns out, you’re not alone. The BS Guys latest research shows 56% of us have been safeguarding toxic secrets or workplace grievances for more than a year! And yet, social science proves that biting your tongue creates problems that can be costly to an organization. Turns out that when it comes to airing our grievances with others, most of us think first about the risks of speaking up like an ugly argument or a damaged relationship. But what most of us do not consider are the risks of staying silent like costly workarounds, avoidance, or underperformance. Next time you have something you’d like to say, but aren’t sure of the consequences of blurting it out, consider both the risks of speaking up and the risks of biting your tongue. Then you can make an honest assessment of whether or not you should swallow your words…forever.