Oftentimes when it comes to the workplace, people tend to just try and get their work done and keep their head down. People are fearful that saying the wrong thing could wind up costing them their job, so they try to say nothing.

But according to Arianna Huffington, the founder of the Huffington Post, taking a chance by being direct is quite admirable.

An article for Insider featured some insight from Arianna Huffington wherein she explains that she actually respects employees who are not afraid to be direct—when they do it compassionately.

That is not a free license to blurt out every critical thought you have, but it is an encouragement to speak up if you feel like there is a better solution to a problem.

Specifically, Huffington says that during interviews with candidates for an open job position, she makes sure to ask them about a time when they have had to be direct with their manager. She says that she often encounters candidates who don’t have an answer for that, which she interprets as a possible fear of expressing themselves.

“It’s not necessarily negative,” she says, “not having a quick answer at the ready could just mean the jobs they’ve been in haven’t been at companies that encouraged compassionate directness.”

The undertone of that comment suggests the reality that many employees do work in environments where they would face repercussions for speaking up. Huffington does not seem unaware of that truth but rather takes it as an indication that the candidate would need to be developed to have more of a leadership attitude.

Huffington believes such a dynamic is beneficial for the business to improve, as well as for the employee to be genuinely happy in their role.

“It’s about those times when it would be fine to do something the accepted way it’s always done, but you see a better way it could be done instead,” she said.

For those who do feel reluctant to be direct at work, it could be very telling to analyze whether you feel that way due to the culture of the workplace, or if there is an internal reason you shy away from being more open in your career.

To learn more about how you can earn respect by being willing to be direct, read the article from Insider here.

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