Would I Lie to You?

Inspired by her popular New York Times article, “How Honesty Could Make You Happier,” award-winning journalist Judi Ketteler takes a deep dive into the hard truths about honesty, from her own personal story to the exploding field of research on the subject, at a time when the world seems full of dishonesty—from elected officials, to corporate leaders, to tabloid-like fakery that gets passed off as news . . . We all want the truth, don’t we? In fact, we demand it. We divorce spouses who withhold it. We insist our children practice it. We’re hurt when our friends don’t divulge it. We’re incensed by politicians who invent it. But when it comes to our own behavior, how often do we transgress? Out of diplomacy, kindness, sympathy, and privacy we don’t always tell the truth. Yet we often barely notice. So, what happens when we do notice? When we truly focus on the decisions we’re making around honesty? When we view our entire life through the lens of honesty? Award-winning journalist and New York Times contributor Judi Ketteler looked at her Facebook page and saw a content mother, a generous friend and sister, a good daughter, and a wife with a happy marriage. It wasn’t quite the whole story though. In thinking about all the truths she wasn’t revealing, Judi realized that the line between truth and deception was beginning to blur. How often had she herself paltered, exaggerated, concealed, side-stepped, or spun the truth? To answer that question, Judi started her “Honesty Journal.” She set out to get to the bottom of her complicated relationship with honesty and confronted her perennial fear of speaking the truth in social situations, among friends, in the workplace, with her kids—and finally, inside her complicated marriage. Blending her personal journey with the latest rese...