We are judgemental beings. Our nature drives us to form opinions about other people, and then to spread those opinions to anyone who has the time to listen. And there is certainly no shortage of ears, eager to hear the next juicy piece of information. We seem to be addicted to speaking about the affairs of others. 

But often this talk amounts to nothing more than rumor, innuendo, or gossip. This is surely not worthy of our time. So, when offered information about another person, we should first ask: Are you certain that what you want to tell me is true? We should then ask, is your statement going to be good or kind? Finally, we should ask, is it necessary that I know this piece of information?

If the information on offer is neither true, nor kind, or is unnecessary to know, we should tell the purveyor of gossip to please say nothing at all.