Anyone can keep a boring secret. Loyalty is keeping the one that would make you popular for a day.

A secret nobody wants to hear is not a test of anything. The real test arrives when the information is valuable, when repeating it would get you attention in a group that does not usually give you any, and when the person it belongs to is not in the room. Popularity bought that way lasts about a day, and the reputation it costs you lasts considerably longer.

When you notice you are holding something interesting, treat that as the signal to be careful rather than the reason to share. Change the subject rather than hinting at it. Hinting is just a slower version of telling.