Contest Entry: Handling Accusations and False Rumours

pexel

An accusation is simply a charge of wrongdoing. It can also be said to be the act of accusing someone; the state or fact of being accused. To understand what a false rumour is, we need to understand what a rumour is. A rumour is a story or piece of information that may or may not be true, but that people are talking about. So in essence, a false rumour is an unverified story or piece of information that is spread from person to person, and it is incorrect or untrue. Technically, it can also be said to be inaccurate.

I have been in both positions of being wrongly accused and also have had people tell rumours about me around. The first feeling that comes from being wrongly accused is feeling bad; yes, one has to feel bad for himself being in such a position. This can cause a sudden regret of such a situation.

I know a close friend who was wrongly accused. First, he felt bad for himself being in such a situation. There were many people against him, accusing him, and he and a few others didn't have much evidence to prove himself innocent. This can lead to depression depending on the situation of the accusation. I felt bad for him, and the bad thing about being wrongly accused is that it paints a wrong image of you around.

One way I try to handle such situations is to be at peace with myself, knowing that I did nothing wrong. Also, I try to keep calm and be at peace with myself. At some point, it gets exhausting trying to clear your name of such rumours. I later figured that if you walk up to people and talk in a way to prove your innocence, you might end up reprising the matter again. So what I do is to avoid the situation, avoid trying to clear my name and avoid trying to prove my innocence.

Instead, I just leave the matter as it was, in the belief that it will fade away and die off. I also give myself space from the situation and also the people involved, if need be. Instead of being seen with such ones or hanging out in such places, I tend to stay away or, at best, stay at home. This helps me to deal with the situation, and yes, it works, but it takes great patience.

Also, what helps is to ignore it should there be any situation where someone brings it up; just ignore it. It'll subtilise the issue, hence dissolve it.

PEXEL

Well, there's a saying, "There's truth in every lie." Some accusations might have truths. Some might not have absolutely correct truth; some might, but end up having a misinterpretation. An instance of this is that I could be suffering from an ulcer, but then I tell my friend that I love eating.

So, they end up telling everyone that I love eating food a lot; this is not wrong, because yes, I have an ulcer, and I love eating. But what they do not know is that I love eating to prevent aches from my stomach. Another scenario is that someone might end up saying I'm a glutton. This situation can be said to be a misinterpretation, in the sense that I eat a lot, yes, but not because I'm in love with foods, but instead because I'm trying to ease and prevent ulcer pains.

So yes, this can somewhat be said to be a partially right rumour. There are slightly any positive rumours; the reason is that rumours are unclear stories, lacking evidence. So, the least positive thing could be that rumours create opportunities for others to investigate a matter, or it could also be like a suggestion of a situation, which might not always be good.

I can't say for certain that there is any part of the accusations that is positive. All I can say is that some accusations are true, and some aren't. The least positive thing about the accusation is that it called for attention and investigation in a situation. But all in all, the negative part overrides the positive part of any rumours, unless there's proof otherwise.

One way to handle accusations is to avoid quickly jumping to conclusions. First, hear the news from both parties, including the defendant, if need be. Also, another thing to do is to initiate your own investigation on the issue. You don't just want to end up judging from the stories you just heard. If possible, one can engage in activities to do their own findings on an issue. This would be best if done in person and not by sending a third party, to avoid the trap of favouring one side or the other.

Pexel

To handle false rumour, one needs to be sure if the information is inaccurate. If so, there should be a quick way to avoid the rumour from escalating any further. If the rumours can't be stopped, then the right information should be read or told to the respected individuals to clear out the old ideology or false rumour. Also, one should note that change takes time, so it might take people time to adjust their ideology about a certain thing or way or an individual.

So yes, patience is also involved. Putting all these together, one might achieve a better way to handle accusations and false rumours. This is my suggestion for handling the situation. I hope this will be a helpful tip for anyone out there. It's always difficult to handle this, but I hope this helps.

I invite @sahmie @bossj23 and @xkool24