# "Keep your own counsel" vs "Mind your own business" **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 30, 2012, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keep-your-own-counsel-vs-mind-your-own-business/633191 "2012-08-30T21:38:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2012, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keep-your-own-counsel-vs-mind-your-own-business/633191/1 "2012-08-30T21:38:22Z")
Do these two phrases, “keep your own counsel” and “mind your own business” have different meanings? If they’re different, what exactly does “keep your own counsel” mean? (I know what the other one means). I’ve been curious about this because in the places I’ve heard/read “keep your own counsel”, “mind your own business” would have also made sense. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2012, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keep-your-own-counsel-vs-mind-your-own-business/633191/2 "2012-08-30T21:44:49Z")
Usually, “keep your own counsel” means “make decisions without consulting others” or “doesn’t let others know what he’s thinking.” Quite different from “mind your own business,” which means, “stay out of other’s decisions.” ---
**Author:** ![Olentzero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/90ced4/32.png) [@Olentzero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Olentzero)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2012, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keep-your-own-counsel-vs-mind-your-own-business/633191/3 "2012-08-31T14:30:13Z")
Is “follow your own advice” a legitimate interpretation? ---
**Author:** ![redtail23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/3e96dc/32.png) [@redtail23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/redtail23)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2012, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keep-your-own-counsel-vs-mind-your-own-business/633191/4 "2012-08-31T15:31:37Z")
I’ve always understood “keep your own counsel” to mean keeping quiet about your own plans and thoughts. As opposed to those folks who seem to feel the need to tell you every opinion or idea that comes into their head, for example. Or as another example, if you had a business idea, you would “keep your own counsel” to protect it, rather than blab about it to everyone you meet. IMO, it’s a different thing than “mind your own business”, which really means “butt out of my business”. ---
**Author:** ![cornflakes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@cornflakes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cornflakes)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2012, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keep-your-own-counsel-vs-mind-your-own-business/633191/5 "2012-08-31T16:20:25Z")
Another way to say that someone keeps their own counsel is to say that they keep their cards close to their chest. If you were to inquire about their affairs (or their cards), they might tell you to mind your own business. ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2012, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keep-your-own-counsel-vs-mind-your-own-business/633191/6 "2012-08-31T21:15:39Z")
> [@redtail23](#): > > I’ve always understood “keep your own counsel” to mean keeping quiet about your own plans and thoughts. > > As opposed to those folks who seem to feel the need to tell you every opinion or idea that comes into their head, for example. This is how I interpret it - either (a) don’t shout your plans to the world so nobody can meddle and thwart them, or (b) shut your festering gob, I don’t need your f\*\*\*ing advice and I don’t want to hear it; counsel yourself, not me. So, (b) is not so much “mind your own business” as “shut up, I didn’t ask your advice”. ---
**Author:** ![filling\_pages](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b9bd4f/32.png) [@filling\_pages](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filling_pages)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2012, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keep-your-own-counsel-vs-mind-your-own-business/633191/7 "2012-08-31T22:57:52Z")
I’ve never heard it used to mean anything like B. “Keep your own council,” as a couple others here have said, just means not telling anyone your plans or secrets. It doesn’t mean not talking about someone else’s. If you told someone to keep their own council, that would be advice to them to stop telling people their business. It would not mean, “do not give me unsolicited advice.” In fact, the best way to avoid getting unsolicited advice would be to keep your own council. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2012, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keep-your-own-counsel-vs-mind-your-own-business/633191/8 "2012-09-01T00:48:03Z")
Thanks for the input 🙂 Now I’m wondering if George Lucas used the phrase correctly in The Phantom Menace, when Yoda is telling Qui Gon that the Jedi, erm, Council doesn’t want Anakin trained - he cuts off the objections with, “Our own counsel we will keep”. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2012, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keep-your-own-counsel-vs-mind-your-own-business/633191/9 "2012-09-01T00:50:53Z")
> [@md2000](#): > > (b) shut your festering gob, I don’t need your f\*\*\*ing advice and I don’t want to hear it; counsel yourself, not me. > > So, (b) is not so much “mind your own business” as “shut up, I didn’t ask your advice”. Yeah, but “mind your own business” can mean (b) as well. In fact, I’d say it more often means that. ---
**Author:** ![manila](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e5b9ba/32.png) [@manila](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/manila)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2012, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keep-your-own-counsel-vs-mind-your-own-business/633191/10 "2012-09-01T01:16:14Z")
> [@Olentzero](#): > > Is “follow your own advice” a legitimate interpretation? Yes absolutely. This is the usual UK-centric interpretation ---
**Author:** ![kyogi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/51bf81/32.png) [@kyogi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kyogi)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2012, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keep-your-own-counsel-vs-mind-your-own-business/633191/11 "2012-09-01T03:12:24Z")
> [@Olentzero](#): > > Is “follow your own advice” a legitimate interpretation? How about “decide for yourself, and share with none” ? ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2012, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keep-your-own-counsel-vs-mind-your-own-business/633191/12 "2012-09-01T03:19:02Z")
I usually interpret “Mind your own business” more as someone being inquisitive, not so much someone offering unwelcome unsolicited advice. (Although it might fit that context too.) ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2012, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keep-your-own-counsel-vs-mind-your-own-business/633191/13 "2012-09-01T03:45:17Z")
At the risk of oversimplifying, “Keep your own counsel” means “Shut up,” and “Mind your own business” means “Don’t ask.” ---
**Author:** ![hibernicus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hibernicus/32/2802_2.png) [@hibernicus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hibernicus)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2012, 7:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/keep-your-own-counsel-vs-mind-your-own-business/633191/14 "2012-09-01T07:48:52Z")
> [@manila](#): > > Yes absolutely. This is the usual UK-centric interpretation While I understand how the words could be understood to mean that, I disagree that that is the meaning of the idiom. Any time I’ve encountered “keep your own counsel” it has meant “don’t share your thoughts with someone else”. The concept of acting in accordance with your own advice is captured in the lovely Shakespeare line “recks not his own rede”.