Hindsight is a wonderful thing, how many times are you left a meeting or conversation and thought, I should have said.... On some occasions, it wouldn't have made a significant impact, others it really mattered.

You see something ethically questionable. Notice someone not being included. Run up against offensive speech. Disagree with an opinion that’s all too quickly become consensus. Want to add a different idea to the decision-making process.

While we’d all like to think that if we saw something, we’d say something in these situations, we are strikingly bad at anticipating how we’ll feel in future circumstances and, for a whole host of cognitive reasons, it can be incredibly difficult to speak up in the moment. In fact, research suggests that most people tend to not act, and then rationalize their inaction.

But you’re not really doing your job — as a diligent employee, compassionate colleague, or thoughtful leader — if you don’t lend your voice to the conversation. So what can you do?

Continue reading this article from HBR to find out how you can speak up when it matters.