Presume Best Intent · The Honest Cut

Presume Best Intent

Over 30 years in business, I've picked up a lot of "principles" that sounded good in theory and fell apart in practice. This isn't one of them. It's held up in every role, every team, and every hard conversation I can remember. I wish someone had handed it to me on day one.

Presume best intent.

A colleague ghosts your email for three days. A teammate cuts you off mid-sentence. Your manager forwards your idea without crediting you.

You have a choice: assume the worst, or assume the best. That choice, made dozens of times a week, shapes how well you work with people — and how well they work with you.

Why we don't do this naturally

Under pressure, we reach for the laziest explanation: they don't respect my time. They think I'm unimportant. They're that kind of person.

It feels true because it's simple. But it's rarely the full picture. More often, they're buried in a deadline, didn't realize you weren't finished, or just forgot — not malicious, just human.

Why it's the better bet

- Most friction comes from pressure, not malice. Overload looks a lot like rudeness from the outside.

- Assuming the worst has a cost even when you're right. Guarded, defensive communication damages relationships faster than the rare vindicated suspicion is worth.

- It keeps you curious instead of defensive — "Hey, was there a reason you didn't loop me in?" is easy to ask when you're not already at war.

- It's reputational capital. People remember who stayed level-headed when things went sideways.

What it's not

Not a blank check. Repeated behavior is data, not an isolated incident. Give the benefit of the doubt once or twice — then let the pattern speak.

Not silence, either. You can believe someone didn't mean the harm *and* still tell them the impact. That conversation goes better when you're not walking in angry.

How to practice it

1. Pause before reacting.

2. Name one charitable explanation before you settle on the uncharitable one.

3. Ask before you assume.

4. Notice when your own language turns to motive ("they clearly don't care") — that's the tell you've skipped to judgment.

30 years in, this is still one of the few things I'd bet on every time. Teams that default to charitable interpretations argue less, recover faster, and build trust that survives the hard conversations. Good manners, sure — but really, just good business.

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Presume Best Intent