We only ever get snippets, then fill in the gaps to form a narrative we can grab a hold of.

So much of what we believe to be inarguable parts of objective reality are really just our assumptions.

Even most of the facts and stats we see are extrapolations from small data sets—a survey of a thousand people of "varied" demographics tells the whole story of a nation.

We like to think we're objective and rational. We like to think we shape our beliefs—our lives—around truth.

But we're not—we don't. We just don't have as much information to go on as we think we do. We make most of it up, then fail to differentiate between what's real and what's assumed.

So, relax your white-knuckled grip on the stories you believe. You don't know why your co-worker behaves the way they do. You don't know what your politicians are conspiring about. You don't know why that friend didn't call.

You're just guessing. And I'm happy to break it to you: you're not as smart as you think you are.

...That sounds like the beginning of next week's post, so I'll leave you there for now :)