I hate disagreement. I hate arguing. Every time I say this, my coworkers don’t believe me. That’s because I disagree a lot. But it’s not because I like it. It’s because I have to.

Imagine a diagnostic panel for a nuclear power plant. Tons and tons of lights for radiation sensors, temperature, water flow, and so forth. All of them are green. Except one that’s blinking red. How do you react? Do you ignore it? Do you chastise it for not agreeing with the others? Do you bang on it to try to make it green? Obviously not. That’s because that red light is telling you something none of the other lights is telling you. In fact, its whole purpose is to tell you something the other lights don’t tell you. If it’s green when the other lights are green and only red when they’re red, it serves no purpose.

When you’re in a discussion about some topic, whether it’s about hiring a candidate, implementing a new strategy, or how to reorganize a team, you’re there to add information and perspective that would not otherwise be there. If those are already represented by other people, you should not be there. You’re wasting your time and possibly theirs. If you have an objection that you’re not voicing because you’re afraid of disagreeable, why are you there?

There is one case where you should keep quiet. That’s when you are in a company where disagreement is frowned upon. If you disagree, stay silent while you look for a new job, and then get out of there. It’s toxic and will limit your career success as long as you remain.