Out on a Limb: Having Opinions That Aren't Approved

I'm coming back with an excerpt from Saturday's post:

Don't be afraid of opinion.

As P.R. says: "...It's my belief ... that one of the big reasons consumers don't trust companies is that companies often strive so hard to be 'PC' that they lose a sense of culture and personality...."

Think before posting something - but when you do post, say something.
(from "Patricio Robles, via Econsultancy (May 27, 2010); micro-reviewed in this blog (May 29, 2010))

Patricio Robles may not have had someone like me in mind when he wrote that. My daughters have told me that it's hard not to tell what I think and feel about something. In person, and in my writing. They're probably right.

My guess is that P. R. was thinking of the common (in America) idea that someone in business should never discuss politics or religion - or pretty much anything else that a potential customer might have an opinion about.

It's not the worst idea, in a way. There's no sense alienating someone who is convinced that the Cubs will win the World Series this year, by opining that the New York Yankees will come out on top.

But What if They'll Find Out You're a Yankees Fan, Anyway?

I'm not a Yankees fan - or a Cubs booster - so I don't need to worry about anybody discovering that I'm a closet fan of some particular team. I am, however, a practicing Catholic. Yep: One of those people.

It's not the sort of thing I can keep a secret, since one of my blogs is A Catholic Citizen in America. Sure: I could have kept quiet about my beliefs. But the bottom line is that even without that blog it would have been a struggle - and probably an unsuccessful one.

Like my daughters observed: I don't hide things well.

So, I've decided to let what I believe come up in posts - where they're relevant to the topic. Like home schooling. Yep: I'm one of those, too. (May 20, 2010, in another blog)

Don't worry, though: I've no intention of being heavy-handed about it. Except maybe in that one blog.

It'll be an interesting experiment. And, I hope, a successful one. My guess, based on a few experiences, is that there are a whole lot of folks out there who really don't mind a blogger who's got religious beliefs.

Of course, I could be wrong.

Related post:

• "Sincerity: Once You Learn to Fake That, You're Set" (May 29, 2010)