The Kramer character on Seinfeld is hysterical when he blurts out whatever is on his mind. We laugh at his honesty because it doesn’t seem to come from a place of judgment but a place of love. Seriously, the next time you see Cosmo Kramer do his shick on Seinfeld, see if the character is an ass that makes rude comments or a good soul saying things to others that they were afraid to deal with?

That’s a tough call because Kramer was created to make us laugh.

So, what about us? How do we feel about telling the truth? For me, I’ve been a straight shooter, except when dealing with what I perceived as fragile people/relationships. I could’ve had it all wrong, but I doubt it. We know when something doesn’t feel right.

When it comes to relationships, I believe we have to be honest in order to have a good one. If you lie or omit stuff in a relationship because you don’t want trouble or to hurt someone else, then your heart isn’t in the relationship at all. The relationships that matter to us deserve the truth, no matter what.

People get over the truth, but they have a really hard time letting go of a lie or the unknown, like when a person ghosts someone and there’s no explanation.

It’s easier to ghost someone than to tell the truth. You don’t have to deal with anything except your thoughts and feelings. But chances are the people who do ghost don’t have much introspection of how their actions affect others. Otherwise, only an evil or truly flighty person would do it. I am referring to close friendships and family relationships.

Telling the truth to a family member or close friend about how you feel is perfectly okay. We all deserve to share our feelings. And when we do that in a relationship, it helps us learn who we can trust. We all know how important trust is. Without trust, there is a shell, fragile and empty on the inside.

Hey, if you want superficial relationships and don’t care, that’s okay, too. My point in this blog is to show that being truthful helps develop not only relationships but ourselves, too.

It takes a lot of courage to speak your truth. Some people don’t want to hear it and will give us a hard time. If that truth is what is best for you, then you have to stick to your guns and ride out the fallout. Otherwise, nothing changes and you can feel resentment.

Telling the truth when someone asks, “Does this look good on me?” is a tough one because they might genuinely like what they’re wearing, but it might not be our taste. That’s when it’s okay to bow out and answer with a “Sure does because you chose it.” That’s a sticky situation.

But if someone asks, “Does this make me look fat?” That’s a different story because someone can see objectively if the clothes do make the person look heavier than they really are. It just happened to me. I put on a pair of pants that I thought were cute and trendy today, satin wide-leg pants. I asked my husband if he thought they looked good. He said, “No, they make you look a lot bigger than you are.” I took his word for it, and I no longer have the pants. Him telling me the truth saved me from looking bigger.

So, if someone you know well asks you for your honest opinion about their clothes or hairdo or someone else, answer them honestly. You’ll be actually helping them if the clothes or hairdo doesn’t look the greatest on them. Just be careful not to weave your style in with your objective opinion.

When it comes to the truth in relationships, here are some simple things to remember:

|=| A true friend will want to hear your feelings, listen, and care.

|=| Just because someone is family doesn’t mean you have to lie to keep the peace. Speaking your truth will make or break the relationship, and that will save you from getting hurt in the long run.

|=| Telling the truth will set you free.

Thank you for reading this.

To the truth,

Francesca