Even when you have access to information and a willing audience, British culture imposes a further question: is it appropriate to share this, here, now, with these people? There are strong norms about what topics belong in which settings. Personal finances are rarely discussed in professional contexts. Internal disagreements are not aired in front of clients.
Someone’s personal difficulties are not mentioned in group settings without their permission. These rules are not written down — they are absorbed and enforced through social consequences. Violating them does not get you reprimanded; it gets you quietly excluded from future information sharing. Pay attention to what others share and do not share in different contexts.
Match your own disclosure to the norms of the setting. When uncertain, err on the side of saying less rather than more. The British will forgive many things more readily than they forgive sharing the wrong information in the wrong place.
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