There is no absolute measure of a person’s credibility – but some people give us more reasons to doubt them than others. These sentences are typical of people we prefer to believe cautiously.
People can be wrong. They can lie – and often have convincing enough reasons to do so. They change and are sometimes in a state where they are not quite themselves, not quite sane. We cannot easily trust our memories and our fears and ideas about the future even less so. Nobody knows the absolute truth, our cognitive abilities are limited and very special. Can we even call any person on this planet credible? Of course we can – but it’s interesting what we actually mean by “credible”.
Certainly we cannot expect even the most trustworthy person to always say everything they say is true or correct. That he is always honest and knows his own limitations and weaknesses exactly. But we can assume that credible people usually have a certain awareness of their own fallibility and limitations. Because anyone who believes they are omniscient will not only be less able to learn and absorb things, but will also be subject to self-deception, which in turn can spread to other people.
Qualities such as authenticity, thoroughness, competence, self-reflection and a sense of responsibility also tend to make a person more credible than a person who is sloppy, lives contrary to their beliefs and has no sense of how their actions affect those around them.
The best way we can probably assess a person’s credibility is to observe carefully and use our intuition, our feelings, and our critical, rational parts equally. However, the following sentences can be reason to take a closer look and approach a person with cautious skepticism: They can indicate that the person is one of the less trustworthy people.
Communication: 4 sentences that help you recognize untrustworthy people
1. “I would never do that.”
Most people have certain taboos that they can’t imagine ever breaking – but who can guarantee that they won’t do so under certain conditions. We know our current and previous selves, we know how we behaved in the past, but from this we can only make assumptions about the future, in which circumstances could affect us that we cannot take into account in our imagination. In this respect, this sentence can be said quickly. However, anyone who takes it as a promise may experience disappointment.
2. “I would have reacted differently.”
As empathetic beings, we can put ourselves in other people’s shoes and imagine what it is like to be in their position. However, we cannot know exactly enough about how they felt and what specific factors influenced their behavior to judge. From a distance it is always easier to see several different options. But for the person concerned in a specific situation, sometimes there is only one.
3. “That’s 100% false.”
Relativizations and restrictions seem unbelievable to many people – but in fact it is usually the absolute statements that have reason to doubt. Credible experts usually clearly state the conditions under which they say that the information they share reflects their level of knowledge or is a consensus in their discipline. On the other hand, anyone who claims to know with 100% certainty what something is like or what it is like has obviously stopped researching further – or thinking – at a rather early point.
4. “There’s no way I said that.”
Untrustworthy people are often more interested in presenting themselves well than in clarifying things and resolving conflicts. After all, this is a quality that can make people untrustworthy: because it tempts them to lie and deceive. While more trustworthy people would be more likely to respond to what has been received by other people and how they can clear up a misunderstanding if necessary, untrustworthy people are more likely to deny guilt and see themselves categorically in the right.