Assume Positive Intent

I had a wonderful boss a few years back. Not only has she become a dear and treasured friend, but she gave me a piece of advice at a moment I genuinely needed to hear it.

Assume positive intent.

The specific advice came in the midst of a random (and long-forgotten) frustration at work. But in true Addison fashion, I was ranting and grumbling about something someone did. Actually, it wasn’t about what they did, it was about how I believed they’d acted. I’d convinced myself that they not only m...