(#1) CAN YOU KEEP A SECRET? SO CAN I. You know, the more you don’t tell people EVERYTHING, the less you have to explain yourself to people, justify what you’re doing, why and so forth. Stop telling people every little detail about your life, what you’re up to or want to do. By keeping your plans and what you want to do a tad secret from the world, you’re then allowed to work on (whatever you’re working on) in silence, private and without distraction. This allows you to make more progress and faster because no one is bothering you, checking up on you or even discouraging you. What I like to do is let my “finished work” do the talking for me. I had so many people tell me to stop writing books, whenever I said, “Hey, I’m writing a new book.” Well, I soon found I was better off if I didn’t tell them. Instead, when they asked me what’s new, I’d say, “Here,” and I’d stick the new book in their hand. Their response was quite the opposite when seeing the finish product. “Wow, Bart, this is cool. Can I have a copy?” This approach to keeping things a secret also lends itself to what your friends and family are doing. Don’t tell others what your friends/family are up to. It just opens the door to unwanted questioning, invasive interrogation, annoying follow-up and the like. User discretion advise, of course, but overall, in life, you’re just better off keeping more things to yourself than blabbering to the world the tiniest little details about whatever it is you’re doing under the sun. Take a lesson from music artists who work on their new albums in secret for MONTHS (even years) only to then release it with great fanfare when the time is right for the public to know about it and take action on what they release.

(#2) Now, how do you go about keeping secrets? Well, here’s how you do it → SHUT UP! What’s more, shut up more often! Instead of feeling the urge to spill your guts just for the sake of conversation or being open and honest with every little transaction in life, just clam the yapper. In fact, shut up and listen more and be heard less; not just to others, but to yourself! Your speech, when you do speak, will have more weight and meaning (and with fewer words) than if you were to yap away incessantly. Besides, no one likes a yappaholic. Also, the beauty about shutting up is no one can tell what you’re thinking, because? YOU DIDN’T SPEAK YOUR MIND! If you don’t say it, no one will know. Just go about your business and do your thing under the veil of SILENCE. Again, don’t tell people your plans to do ___ or anything. See the beauty (and weight lifted off your emotions) when you don’t tell people everything? Here’s a tip for you → talk to people on a “need-to-know” basis 60-80% of the time; that is, unless you have responsibilities to children, family, work or a spouse, etc., then you gotta talk and keep them company sometimes with conversation and getting your work done. Still, don’t give away the farm in conversation. The less said, the less information folks have to criticize, use against you, stomp all over your thoughts and dreams, etc., hence affecting your emotions in a potentially (negative) way. From now on, you’re gonna what? Shut up, more often, to give your emotions a rest from the world and their daggers. Make sense? Good. I’ll shut up now. ;-)))