76. You Only See a Small Tip of a Huge Iceberg

We think we know what’s going on, why others react the way they do, what motivates people, and why things are the way they are. Is it self-centeredness, naivety, or a combination of the two? Beware, you only see a small part of peo­ple’s story; the tip of the iceberg if you will.

There’s always more to the story and everyone has a story. Remembering that we don’t know the whole story keeps us from jumping to conclusions and judg­ments and crashing into an iceberg like the Titanic. Think about it, we hope others don’t jump to conclusions about us. Therefore, you can respect others by skip­ping judgments and getting curious about their story knowing you are only seeing a small portion of what’s really happening in their ocean.

How can I suspend my judgments, at least temporarily, to try and understand another person’s story?