I was asked by a board to conduct interviews regarding perceptions of a CEO. A senior staff person was angry with the CEO and complained that the senior staff had not been respectfully informed or included in the process.

Then I told her that it was not the CEO’s decision but the board dictated how the process would proceed. In fact, we changed the process to include the senior staff. She immediately now saw things differently and relaxed her judgment and even became appreciative of the CEO. She realized that he was not purposely shutting out the senior team. She even shared many examples of respect and strong communication.

How many times do we think we see the whole picture and make attributions about someone’s behavior? When we find out there is more to the story, our view completely changes.

Think of times when you saw things one way and then learned more and realized your assumptions were not accurate. Then remind yourself often that “we don’t know what we don’t know.” There is usually more to a story than we see.

Focus on catching yourself when in judgment and seek more understanding.