The Truth about Lies in the Workplace: How to Spot Liars and What to Do about Them

Lying in the workplace happens every day. People tell inconsequential lies, substantive lies, little lies, big lies, social lies and malicious lies. They tell lies of omission, lies that obscure facts, and lies that are blatant misrepresentations of the truth. Some lies - "white" lies - smooth the way for workplace interactions ("That's a nice tie you're wearing." "I'd be happy to serve on your committee.") Other lies poison business relationships, destroy employee engagement, and kill workplace productivity. The latter - destructive lies - is what Lies in the Workplace focuses on. This book looks at the high cost of workplace deception (for individuals and for organizations), why people tell lies, and why we tend to believe some liars over others. It examines the role that our own motives, vanities, desires, self-deceptions and rationalizations play in allowing ourselves to be duped. It then covers the verbal and nonverbal cues that you can use to spot a liar at work (an expanded version of Goman's Forbes blog), and urges the reader to be aware of their nonverbal behaviors, so that feeling anxious, introverted, or shy doesn't inadvertently signal untrustworthiness. It ends with insights on how to reduce lies in the workplace.