An incident that took place between me and my dad (who was a Colonel in the Indian Army then) a few years ago has been doing the rounds in my mind since morning. It was during the Kargil War with Pakistan that Army Headquarters in here used to hold a daily media update.

During one of these telecasts (TV channels used to show it live), I just causally commented to my dad that these spokespeople must really know about the insider *real* situation. My dad told me that one rule that is always followed in the Army is that no one, at any level, is told more than what they require for their operational requirement.

That one thing really struck home with me! Too many times we just reveal too much that we actually venerate. But at the same time we indeed have to tell about certain things so that the person on job can actually do what we require him to do.

When faced with this question, just ask yourself — how much information does this person need for his operational requirement?

Knowing how to keep your mouth shut will save your a*s more times than you might want to believe. Maybe I’d go more in-depth on this topic sometime later.