Day 97 (Ninety-seven) of 365 days

It is very important to learn that when someone says something hurtful or harsh, it says more about them than you. Or if a close friend doesn't seem to be replying to your messages, it doesn't mean they're ignoring you or that they've moved on from the friendship. It gives me this reminder that we should never assume someone else's current situation or state of mind.

An extremely happy person might be going through a tough patch that we know nothing about. Some people may not like showing that they're going through some trouble or that they're just good at masking their feelings and there's absolutely nothing wrong with it.

In my earlier life, I would hesitate from asking because I wouldn’t want to sound stupid. But over the years, I’ve learned that asking prevents miscommunication, doubt, mistrust, and conflict in relationships and even in work environments. We often jump to conclusions based on our assumptions and inevitably it leads to an emotional drama of some sort. The emotional tug of war can be with another person, it can also be with ourselves and our mind. This can be draining and create ill feelings between people. It can be something as simple as if you don’t get a phone call back from someone or an email, you tend to find rationales, reasons for that. It can also be that if a person is quiet and doesn’t talk much, introverted, they are either proud, aloof, unfriendly.

Many of us have had the experience where we assume something about someone, but then we find out something entirely different once we explore further or get to know the person. I can say that I've had this happen on many occasions. And it has taught me to watch my filters.

We miss out on really knowing another person and who they are, what they care about, when we don’t take the time to let them reveal themselves. So, never assume, always ask!