Little White Lies

At least one time in everyone's life they have told a little white lie. From the common "I'm on my way" when they haven't even left their house yet to "No you don't look bad in that." Everyone has said a lie in their life time. There are different motivations for lying. One motive can be to protect someone's feelings another reason is to protect yourself from getting in trouble. In personal experience, my motive for telling little white lies is to protect myself from getting in trouble and they have worked so far.

Why We Cooperate with Liars by Meyers

In Pamela Meyers' TED Talk "How to Spot a Liar" she states that lying is a cooperative act. When this statement was said I stopped to think how many times I knew someone was lying to me but I still went along with it. After I figured out a number I asked myself "why did I go along with the lie?" That question was answered by a quote from Henry Oberlander that Meyers said in her podcast stating that "Everyone is willing to give you something for whatever it is they're hungry for." This means that everyone is willing to cooperate if they are getting something they want/need in return for cooperating with the lie. That statement is 100% true in my case, every time I have cooperated with a lie it was because I knew I would get something in return for cooperating.

Lie Spotting from Meyers

Everyone lies, some people lie more than others but no matter what everyone lies. In Pamela Meyers TED Talk "How to Spot a Liar" she says people will tell a lie anywhere from 10-200 times a day. After stating that fact about lying, Meyers goes on to give tips on how to spot when a person is lying. One tip is that when someone is lying they tend to be more proper using do not and can not instead of don't and can't. Another tip is that the liar distance themselves from the act or person that they are lying about. The final tip is the duping smile, this is when the liar thinks they are getting away with the lie so they start to get a little smirk. These tips are useful in spotting a liar and useful in life since everyone lies.