What’s Worse, A Lie Or A Secret?

Sometimes we lie because we don’t want to hurt people’s feelings or to encourage them, the same can be said for secrets. But when is lying or keeping a secret hurtful and when is it okay to push the boundaries in order to protect someone we care for? According to actress and wellness entrepreneur, Pooja Bedi, “if you are being deceitful within the relationship, your personality, ethics and courage need to be questioned as well as the level of your respect for your partner’s right to know and act accordingly.” GeetArsh Kaur, the founder of The Skill School, says balance is key. “The human mindset is such that we only think of a lie in a negative context. It doesn’t have to be,” Kaur says lies can save a relationship while a secret is “the wrong word” for something that you don’t want to disclose or give unnecessary importance to.  Relationship coach Altaf Shaikh says people hide things and say their partner “won’t understand” or the information is “irrelevant.” Shaikh says partners only share about 70 percent of information about themselves.