It’s not everyone’s business to know your business.
I wouldn’t say I was an over-sharer but I will say that I shared too much, especially when vulnerable. I had to learn how to stop doing so when I started to realize that not everyone is happy for you. A lot will say they are but most aren’t.
Like I said earlier, I wouldn’t say I’m an over-sharer; however, when I am in a vulnerable state, I tend to share how I may be feeling or what I may be going through. The past year and a half has taught me to keep my mouth shut. Have you ever had something great happen to or for you, you start telling a few people and all of a sudden that thing slows down or combusts at the seam completely? Yeah… me too.
There are so many things I may have wanted to start or started doing and I began noticing that as soon as I start telling a handful of people, whatever it is becomes stagnant or just fails completely. I used to wonder why that is in the years gone by but then started realizing that this only happens when I share my good news with others.
This year, moving forward my lips are sealed. Whatever, I have to share will be strictly between me and God and my husband. NO ONE ELSE. My husband actually showed me another side to it. He said “ Sometimes we share plans, goals etc. with others and they may seem happy and encouraging and that in itself makes you complacent. You start losing the excitement and drive you had for that thing after people start prematurely complimenting you”. In that breath, I want to share with you a few reasons why you may want to hold back on sharing your dreams, aspirations and good news. Delete that text sis, your bestie doesn’t need to know every little detail of your life.

Privacy Protection: People are unfortunately trifling these days. They may appear to have good intentions and say “you can tell me anything, I won’t tell a soul”, meanwhile, they’re already plotting how many people they can’t wait to tell your business to. The more people know about you, the more information they have to spread. More often that not, that information can be used in malicious ways and harm you or your reputation in the long run. Kindly, zip it.

Negative Feedback: Have you ever told someone you wanted to do something and their immediate response is “are you sure you want to do this?”—- Yes Susan, I’m sure🙄. Unless you’re planning on doing something that’s detrimental to your health or life, most times that response is a projection. I’ve found that A lot of people are afraid to go after their dreams and project that fear onto others who’re going after theirs. This can cause you to start undermining yourself. Don’t do it.

Unwanted Pressure: Sometimes when we share our goals too early with others, there becomes an unstated pressure to succeed. You’ve now told the whole world what you’re goin to do and now everyone’s watching in anticipation to see if you’ll succeed or fail. That kind of external pressure can cause the journey to that goal to be come stressful and not enjoyable. Shhh.

Jealousy & Envy: 😮‍💨 So many people say “I’m so happy for you” but in reality a lot of them are not and that’s the sad truth. In my 34 years, I have learned that even if someone is happy for you, sometimes they don’t want to see you doing better than them. I never understood that mindset. There are people in your life or you may know that feel threatened by your success or even feel threatened by your audacity to dream big for yourself. A few ways to spot an enemy of progress are: a)backhanded compliments. Sis, if you’re not going to say something nice then zip it. b)they try to sabotage your plans (cue tiktok story-times), c)passive-aggressiveness; pretending they’re happy and okay but there’s a a bit of attitude on the underside. Activate the spirit of hush.

Distraction from your focus/purpose: These are the people that are like an annoying fly in your ear. Sometimes we may get caught up in sharing our goals a bit too early and here comes negative nancy subtly injecting doubts and fears into your mind. You’re now left justifying and explaining why you’re going after said goal. This can be frustrating and now distracts you from your purpose. Again.. shhhh.

Keeping your life and business private is about maintaing and protecting your peace and emotional well-being. It’s also about protecting your purpose and avoiding unnecessary detours and distractions. So 2025 and beyond, let’s keep our visions to ourselves and Jesus. Don’t give the enemy and his cohorts a gateway into the plans God has for your life.
P.S. Take note of the people around you and ask the Holy Spirit to show you the enemies of progress in your life so you eliminate them accordingly.

If you enjoy newsletters such as this, kindly share it and spread the word. I hope you enjoyed today’s reading. Until next time!

Xoxo,
Abi🩷