• Criticize in private, praise in public. I’ve always lived by this one. Bridgewater corporation takes the opposite of this approach and is lauded for it. Th

• Criticize in private, praise in public. I’ve always lived by this one. Bridgewater corporation takes the opposite of this approach and is lauded for it. The idea is that you get better results by saying what you think honestly but respectfully. Maybe it works there, but I’ve worked with ex Bridgewater people and they’re toxic. Evidently it’s very hard to develop the social skills to give public criticism in a way that doesn’t erode trust. Such feedback often comes across as callous and sometimes disrespectful. Withholding approval/praise in public; tentativeness, etc., will convey the message to socially perceptive folks, while not conveying to others that you support bad plans/designs/ideas. Not everyone is socially perceptive, and even for those who are, it’s always good to follow up in private where you can convey your concerns while being respectful- in a 1:1 you can take the time needed to ensure that you get across that you’re concerned with the idea, not the person; you often don’t have the time for that in meetings and besides even if you’re 100% right the other person could lose “face” with others. Yes maybe they already did with their statements, but you don’t need to compound it. Also the other effort is cohesion. If you are part of a team they WILL lose trust in you quickly if you frequently side with “others” (against your team) in meetings, regardless of whether you’re correct. Closely related is “don’t try to always win” against someone who you need a long term relationship with. If you always win, you’re in a relationship with a loser. Or you’re an asshole. Or both.