One of the best changes I made during the pandemic for my mental health was realizing that I was starting to fall into that mental trap too and deliberately deciding not too.

I'm not always great at it, but since then, I have started to try to interpret most things I read online as charitably as possible, especially when I choose to respond to someone.

As if by magic, once I did, I started seeing that the world was a more positive place than I had realized. So much of my perception of negativity was something I was creating in the process of interpretation. It wasn't in the data itself.

Giving people more of the benefit of the doubt does set me up to occasionally be suckered. I accept that as a worthwhile price to pay to give kindness towards the majority of other people who are acting in good faith.

Sort of like the value of money, society is what we believe it to be.