Which is better -being truthful or being tactful?

give alaskanecho the 10 points..they took my answer....that truly is the right way to go

You don't have to pick one...you can have both.

Just tell the truth in a tactful manner.

Are you asking about white lies? I think those are different than tact...those are ways to spare people feelings on things that really don't matter as opposed to being blunt or obnoxious in stating something that doesn't need to be said.

It's always better to be truthful but the two are never mutually exclusive. You can always find something true to say that is still tactful. Someone asked a question here about how they should respond to their friend who had started a band and they sounded really terrible.

I told them to tell their friend that they had a lot of potential and they should keep practicing so that they could get better. Another method is to just don't say anything but to change the subject. Telling a lie is always wrong.

why, tactfully stated truth, of course! remember, there is the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. It is OK to give a partial truth IF it is also nothing but the truth and the person can take away something useful or positive. Telling a lie under the cover of 'tact,' and being tactless under the cover of 'telling the truth' are both immature cop-outs.

Being tactful & truthful, go hand in hand.

I don't think its tactful to wait until you get to the altar an tell the bride you don't love her, and been dating her sister for a year.

Tact b4 Truth

It is wise to always be truthful, but when you are and you know how the truth can hurt sometimes, be tactful. I agree with the person who said, it's not what you say, but how you say it". That is very true in most instances. Good luck.

Being tactful without compromising the truth overly.

Depends on who we're dealing with. A crazy person,tact. A normal person, truth.

Why can't you do both? You can present the truth in tactful fashion. Being tactful does not, in any way, mean you present untruthful information.

Truthful!

truth is wonderful but tact goes a long way and is sometimes necessary