Everyone gossips sometimes.  Even me.  Why?  It can be sort of fun.  It can make us feel better about ourselves.  It can help us feel connected to the person we’re gossiping with.  These are all good things.  So, is gossip really that bad?

Yes.  I really think it is that bad.

I believe gossip is bad for our mental health for a number of reasons, including:

1. It takes our focus away from the positives of life and makes us focus on the negatives

2. It encourages us to assume the worst in people, and causes us to doubt people’s intentions, motives, and the effort they put into their lives

3.  It can really screw up relationships if word of your gossiping gets out (and it very often does)

4.  It makes you feel crummy after the gossiping is over

5.  It does absolutely nothing to improve the state of our lives, our communities, and our world

So what if we made a pledge to stop gossiping for even a day or a week?  Would that change anything?  My bet is it would.  Try giving up the gossip for a week and notice if it makes a difference in how you feel about yourself and the people around you.  I bet it will make a difference about how they feel about you!

Need some ideas about how to stop gossiping?  Check out this article on the blog Tiny Buddha: How To Stop Gossiping and Creating Drama.