Open up...I mean you

Someone confided in me today and admitted they'd had a wobbly day over the weekend. I wasn't in much of a position to do anything about it and that was ok, the person didn't need me to; It was simply a statement and admission, the person acknowledging that they'd had a moment.

What I thought was really great was that the person then went on to say, with a great deal of conviction, they they will be giving up smoking. Brave, responsible and positive for the future life of that individual!

I have harangued the person in the past about quitting smoking, but I knew the habit would not be kicked until they wanted to and that's how it should be; it takes effort and hard work to give up an addictive habit like smoking and without a compelling personal reason to do so it's unlikely to be successful. I'm really pleased the person is kicking the habit now and extra-pleased to hear such conviction. I'm confident the process will succeed, although it may be difficult. (Sometimes good results are difficult to obtain though right?)

Later, I was thinking about how some people are happy to confide in others and some are not; I tend to be in the middle somewhere and play my cards close to my chest on most occasions, however if I trust someone and know they are around me for the right reasons, I may open up a little and confide a thing or two. I've had my trust broken before, it never feels nice, and so I'm cautious. I think there's a time for confiding in others though, and some things are better said as troubles shared lightens the load, or some such saying that goes something like that.

So, I thought I'd put two questions to you folks in this post and invite comments below. There's no obligation to answer any of them, or you can answer both if you like...Either way, feel free to comment.

• Do you confide in others easily or do you have a single person you confide in? Is there a limit to what you'll share with them? Or, do you hold your cards close to your chest and confide in no one?

• Have you kicked a bad habit and, if so, how difficult was it, how long did it take and what challenges did you face? Or, do you have a bad habit you want to quit and if so how will you do so?

Remember, there's no obligation to respond to any of the above, but if you'd like to open up and share please go ahead. I'll throw some larger votes on some of the better comments.