Episode 65: Why Is Confidentiality So Important?
Creative Work Hour
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| Season: 2 Episode: 65 | |
Creative Work Hour Podcast
Episode 65: Why Is Confidentiality So Important?
Recorded: Saturday, September 13, 2025
Today’s Crew - Alessandra, Greg, Shadows Pub, Bobby B, Devin.
“Why Confidentiality Is So Important in Small Groups”
Today the crew unpacks why confidentiality is the backbone of small groups like Creative Work Hour, support groups, therapy circles, and any tight-knit community.
They explore how trust forms early in life, how breaches shift relationships, why “what you hear here stays here” actually matters, and how confidentiality protects both people and their creative work.
From everyday friendships to NDAs, (Non Disclosure Agreements), the team ties personal experience to practical guidance so groups can stay safe, respectful, and effective.
The episode opens with a reminder that confidentiality often starts early in life: common ground creates friendships, and trust grows when someone decides to share something private. That simple social contract is what keeps small groups safe and productive.
Quotes and key points from the crew
- Alessandra
Quote: “The contract of that friendship is… I can tell him that I like Devin. [When that’s broken] that’s a game changer.”- Key point: Confidentiality is a learned value that begins with common experiences and becomes essential when people take emotional risks. In creative groups it also shields intellectual property.
- Greg
Quote: “Loose lips sink ships.”- Key point: Breaking confidence can feel like a betrayal. In vulnerable spaces, keeping what’s shared inside the group protects people and preserves trust.
- Shadows Pub
Quote: “When I find out that somebody is violating that, then, yep, that totally changes the relationship.”- Key point: Even people who are generally private or open have boundaries. A breach changes what they will share going forward.
- Bobby B
Quote: “Trust can be hard to earn… and broken is something that can immediately terminate the situation.”- Key point: People have different thresholds for privacy. Clarifying expectations matters; some people use practical measures (pseudonyms, separate author names) to protect privacy.
- Devin
Quote: “One of my favorite provisions… is that the very existence of this agreement is confidential information.”- Key point: You can’t assume what’s sensitive for someone else. Confidentiality allows creative risk-taking — people share drafts and ideas only when they feel safe.
Main takeaways
- Confidentiality enables risk: When people trust a group to keep things private, they’re willing to share work and feelings that help them improve.
- Small leaks can have big consequences: Even a single reveal can change relationships and damage reputations.
- Clarify expectations: Define what’s confidential up front (membership, works-in-progress, names, agreements).
- Protect both people and work: Confidentiality covers emotional safety and intellectual property.
- Repair and model norms: Leaders should set the example and address breaches quickly and respectfully.
Episode highlights
- Childhood roots: Trust often begins with simple shared contexts (same class, same group) and deepens through private disclosures.
- A small story with big lessons: The playful “Alessandra likes Devin” example shows how quickly dynamics shift when confidences are broken.
- Real-world parallels: NDAs illustrate that sometimes even the fact of an agreement is meant to be private.
- Practical privacy tools: Use clear group norms, ask before sharing, and consider structural measures (pseudonyms, controlled channels) when needed.
Action steps for small groups
- State confidentiality norms at the start of every session.
- Ask before sharing someone’s name, membership, or work outside the group.
- Use clear language: what is okay to share, with whom, and under what conditions.
- Leaders should model confidentiality and call out breaches calmly and promptly.
- Consider practical privacy tools (pseudonyms, separate accounts) when the risk of exposure is high.
Why this matters:
Confidentiality is not just etiquette; it’s the infrastructure that lets small groups function. Kept confidences build trust over time, and that trust is what makes honest feedback, growth, and collaboration possible.
Share and follow Tell the crew:
Why is confidentiality important to you?
Visit creativeworkhour.com to share thoughts or suggest topics for future episodes.
Credits Today’s crew: Alessandra, Greg, Shadows Pub, Bobby B, Devin
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Episode Chapters
Creative Work Hour Podcast
Episode 65: Why Is Confidentiality So Important?
Recorded: Saturday, September 13, 2025
Today’s Crew - Alessandra, Greg, Shadows Pub, Bobby B, Devin.
“Why Confidentiality Is So Important in Small Groups”
Today the crew unpacks why confidentiality is the backbone of small groups like Creative Work Hour, support groups, therapy circles, and any tight-knit community.
They explore how trust forms early in life, how breaches shift relationships, why “what you hear here stays here” actually matters, and how confidentiality protects both people and their creative work.
From everyday friendships to NDAs, (Non Disclosure Agreements), the team ties personal experience to practical guidance so groups can stay safe, respectful, and effective.
The episode opens with a reminder that confidentiality often starts early in life: common ground creates friendships, and trust grows when someone decides to share something private. That simple social contract is what keeps small groups safe and productive.
Quotes and key points from the crew
- Alessandra
Quote: “The contract of that friendship is… I can tell him that I like Devin. [When that’s broken] that’s a game changer.”- Key point: Confidentiality is a learned value that begins with common experiences and becomes essential when people take emotional risks. In creative groups it also shields intellectual property.
- Greg
Quote: “Loose lips sink ships.”- Key point: Breaking confidence can feel like a betrayal. In vulnerable spaces, keeping what’s shared inside the group protects people and preserves trust.
- Shadows Pub
Quote: “When I find out that somebody is violating that, then, yep, that totally changes the relationship.”- Key point: Even people who are generally private or open have boundaries. A breach changes what they will share going forward.
- Bobby B
Quote: “Trust can be hard to earn… and broken is something that can immediately terminate the situation.”- Key point: People have different thresholds for privacy. Clarifying expectations matters; some people use practical measures (pseudonyms, separate author names) to protect privacy.
- Devin
Quote: “One of my favorite provisions… is that the very existence of this agreement is confidential information.”- Key point: You can’t assume what’s sensitive for someone else. Confidentiality allows creative risk-taking — people share drafts and ideas only when they feel safe.
Main takeaways
- Confidentiality enables risk: When people trust a group to keep things private, they’re willing to share work and feelings that help them improve.
- Small leaks can have big consequences: Even a single reveal can change relationships and damage reputations.
- Clarify expectations: Define what’s confidential up front (membership, works-in-progress, names, agreements).
- Protect both people and work: Confidentiality covers emotional safety and intellectual property.
- Repair and model norms: Leaders should set the example and address breaches quickly and respectfully.
Episode highlights
- Childhood roots: Trust often begins with simple shared contexts (same class, same group) and deepens through private disclosures.
- A small story with big lessons: The playful “Alessandra likes Devin” example shows how quickly dynamics shift when confidences are broken.
- Real-world parallels: NDAs illustrate that sometimes even the fact of an agreement is meant to be private.
- Practical privacy tools: Use clear group norms, ask before sharing, and consider structural measures (pseudonyms, controlled channels) when needed.
Action steps for small groups
- State confidentiality norms at the start of every session.
- Ask before sharing someone’s name, membership, or work outside the group.
- Use clear language: what is okay to share, with whom, and under what conditions.
- Leaders should model confidentiality and call out breaches calmly and promptly.
- Consider practical privacy tools (pseudonyms, separate accounts) when the risk of exposure is high.
Why this matters:
Confidentiality is not just etiquette; it’s the infrastructure that lets small groups function. Kept confidences build trust over time, and that trust is what makes honest feedback, growth, and collaboration possible.
Share and follow Tell the crew:
Why is confidentiality important to you?
Visit creativeworkhour.com to share thoughts or suggest topics for future episodes.
Credits Today’s crew: Alessandra, Greg, Shadows Pub, Bobby B, Devin
The Creative Work Hour crew digs into why confidentiality is central to small groups, from childhood friendships to NDAs (Non Disclosure Agreements) - and how it protects people, reputations, and creative work. The conversation moves between personal examples, practical rules, and why group norms matter if people are going to take risks and grow together.
Greg
00:00 - 00:20
Hello and welcome back to another episode of the Created Work Hour Podcast. Today is episode 65. It is September the 13th, 2025, and in the room today you've got myself, Greg, we have Alessandra, Shadows Pub, Bobby, Lee, and Devin. Today's question is all about confidentiality.
Greg
00:20 - 00:44
Alessandra and I were talking before we came on air about how important confidentiality is in small groups, such as creative work hour or support groups or any small group, really, and how confidentiality plays a pretty major part. So today's question with that said is, why is confidentiality so important? Alessandra?
Alessandra
00:44 - 01:13
I think that confidentiality starts when we're children. We have a value of confidentiality before we even know what that word confidentiality or even what the word value means. As soon as we are old enough and big enough and ambulatory enough to leave the house as our own little selves, we head off to school, right? And that's where we are learning about relationships outside of the family of origin.
Alessandra
01:13 - 01:39
We're learning about the relationship with power that's in the classroom, and the relationship with peers is both in the classroom and out on the playground or in the gym. We're learning that. We're learning that what is friendship Is based on values and I think the first value to hand is the value of commonality. What do we have in common?
Alessandra
01:39 - 01:54
Oh, okay. So, little Alessandra and little Greg and Devin and shadows and Sharon and Bobby that we're all we're all in a classroom. Right. And if we weren't in that classroom, we wouldn't be friends because we wouldn't have met.
Alessandra
01:54 - 02:22
So there's a commonality. So it's not just that we're in school, we're in a particular place, at a particular time, at a particular grade, in a particular classroom, right? And so that commonality brings about friendship at a level. Now, what we learn more about relationships is, I'm going to trust you that I can share this piece of information about my life, about my little life with you.
Alessandra
02:23 - 02:39
I can say to Greg, Greg, I like Devin, but don't tell him. Do not tell him. And that's the contract of that friendship is, yes, we got some stuff in common, and I feel comfortable enough with him that I can tell him that I like Devin.
Greg
02:40 - 02:40
Hey Devin, Alessandra likes you.
Alessandra
02:42 - 02:59
Okay, that's a game changer, isn't it? Why? Because even though it's a big long word, it broke confidentiality. So now that relationship has changed, even if I never find out that Greg has breached that secret that I like Devin.
Alessandra
03:00 - 03:13
Now, so now we're all big kids. We're all big kids and we're grown up or we're doing our best. We're still growing up, right? And friendships are still based on commonality at first level.
Alessandra
03:13 - 03:57
And at a deeper level, you take the risk to trust someone with something that has happened to you or with something that has happened to someone that you love. and it can be something great, but we can't tell anybody yet, or something so not great, and we just can't let it, we just can't talk about it. Now, that is a value that's woven into the nature of particular kinds of small groups, like support groups, like 12-step groups, like even, say, issue group therapy groups, and yes, creative work hour. So it's not just that we're creative that brings us together.
Alessandra
03:58 - 04:18
And it's not that we're creative in particular ways or styles or success levels. but we're creative in a confidential way. So that's what we're exploring with this topic today is so why is confidentiality so important? Greg, why is it?
Alessandra
04:18 - 04:38
This is the part you love the most when I give the question that you've sculpted for us so beautifully. when I ask it of you. So Greg, why is confidentiality so important to you in small groups, whether it's this one or maybe it's one that you orchestrate in your own creative work?
Greg
04:39 - 05:05
Thank you, Alessandra. Yeah, absolutely love these questions. There's an old saying that goes back to wartime, and it rings very true, and that is, loose lips sink ships. And what that means is, if the Allied forces were on a mission, or were going to do a mission a certain time, date, and somebody shared that information, it could get into the wrong hands.
Greg
05:06 - 05:27
And so instead of the mission being successful, ships could be bombed and sunk. So why is confidentiality so important? Well, when somebody comes to you and shares something in confidence, oftentimes they're making themselves very vulnerable. You could hurt that person if you betray that confidence.
Greg
05:27 - 05:47
And so it's all about trust. Vulnerability and that breach of confidence, it's almost a betrayal. You know, Alessandra joked, I like Devon, right? And it's very innocent, but it could be something deeply personal or more serious or something that could harm that person if the wrong person found out.
Greg
05:47 - 06:04
And it's just not nice to go behind someone's back. When it comes to support groups, particularly people are in a very vulnerable situation in space then. And so what you hear there should stay there. You know, I hate that cliche, what you hear here stays here, here, here.
Greg
06:05 - 06:10
But it's true. It's very true. So that's kind of what I think. But Shadows, how about you?
Greg
06:11 - 06:14
Why is confidentiality so important?
Shadows Pub
06:14 - 06:35
Well, I make my life such an open book that when I do share things, you know, I just expect that it's going to get spread around. No, seriously, I really don't share very much. And when I do, it's usually pretty selected. When I find out that somebody is violating that, then, yep, that totally changes the relationship.
Shadows Pub
06:35 - 06:36
So, yeah, it's important.
Greg
06:36 - 06:42
Yeah, for sure. Bobby, how about you? Why is confidentiality so important?
Bobby. B
06:42 - 07:27
I think that trust can be hard to earn and part of that is because some people's level of what they think should be confidential or not can vary. And so my, you know, for me, I'm very, very cautious in what I tell people and how I tell them until I really feel they earn a level of confidentiality. And then, of course, broken is something that can immediately terminate the situation. But knowing what the other person's level of confidentiality is can be huge, you know, because it was, oh, that's not such a big deal.
Bobby. B
07:27 - 07:42
Well, yeah, it was devastating. So there's definitely got to be a level of acceptance and respect. And I think like I said, so that's why I tipped over into any, you know, sharing to the point that I use different author names in part for that reason.
Greg
07:42 - 07:47
Thank you, Bobby. Devon, how about you? Why is confidentiality so important?
Devin
07:47 - 08:34
Well, I'll tack on a little bit to what Bobby said, because a lot of what I do in my job is to read and sign non-disclosure agreements. And one of my favorite provisions in most of those NDAs is that it says the very existence of this agreement is confidential information. And it underscores the fact that you don't know what is confidential to the other party when they're sharing it. And especially, you know, in terms of support groups, you're talking about Greg, you know, we can all think of certain groups that you wouldn't mention somebody that you knew from the group, if it had any potential stigma to it, but you don't know, you could say.
Devin
08:35 - 09:07
You know, I've got this friend Bobby, he's in my creative work hour group. And somebody could think, Bobby's a creative? Oh, he must be one of those insert political party that you hate, you know, and now Bobby's got drama, just because you revealed a confidence that he was in the group or any, you know, anything anyone shares, you just don't know what is confidential. And that it's the fabric of the trust that allows us to take risks, particularly in this group, because Sharing creative work is a risk for most people.
Devin
09:07 - 09:31
Putting something out there, even in a limited universe for other people to see and evaluate, is a risk. And so without the trust, people are going to be very reticent to say, well, here's my creative work that I made. What do you think? So I think in this group, like many groups, confidentiality is just a foundational element that has to be there in order for people to take the risks that we need to take in order to grow.
Greg
09:31 - 09:51
Thank you, Devin. Yeah, especially you have a very good understanding of confidentiality in your line of work, so I can sure appreciate that, because if you were to breach confidentiality, it could have ramifications for yourself, but it could be devastating, like you said, for another party. Alessandro, this is a very interesting discussion. What do we think?
Alessandra
09:51 - 10:11
I think it is tricky, but I think, you know, I was having a conversation with another founder this week and she thought that I had misspoken when I said, yes, we've run these daily live sessions. We've done more than 3000 of them. And she was convinced I meant 300. I'm like, no, no, no 3000.
Alessandra
10:12 - 10:18
She's like, how do you do that? I'm like, it's all in the architecture. She's like, how's that? Like, where's it built?
Alessandra
10:18 - 10:43
I'm like, The architecture i'm talking about is the values of creative work hour and that is more than about being creative it's about holding in honor what we're each working on that we share the spotlight. but we keep our confidences. So the intellectual property is safe, but we're all a golden goose. And these geese, they take care of each other.
Alessandra
10:44 - 10:59
And the biggest way that we take care of each other is in confidentiality. I think that the conveyance of love and honor is to keep confidence. I'm just wondering though, as we've been talking for a bit, what time is it, Greg?
Greg
11:00 - 11:13
It's that time again. You've wasted some perfectly good time listening to the Creative Work Hour podcast when you could have been doing something else. But oh no, you decided to tune in anyway. But I'm glad that you did.
Greg
11:14 - 11:24
But let me ask you a question. Why is confidentiality so important to you? Let us know what you think. You can visit us at creativeworkhour.com.
Greg
11:25 - 11:35
If you have a question that you'd like to hear the crew discuss, let us know that too. In the meantime, be safe and come back next week and we'll have another discussion. Thank you.
