In life, we often rush to judge others based on their actions without considering the intent behind them.

Imagine you see someone gulping down their wine; it’s easy to label them as indulgent or irresponsible. But Epictetus invites us to pause and reframe our perspective: simply observe the fact that they drink a lot.

By doing this, you restrain yourself from attaching a good or bad label to an action you don’t fully understand. Ask yourself, have you ever been misjudged because someone else failed to grasp your reasons?

It's about suspending judgment and recognizing that we rarely have the full picture. When you encounter someone racing through their tasks, resist the impulse to critique their quality of work. They might be in a hurry for reasons unknown to you. By focusing only on what you know for certain, you avoid the arrogance of assuming you know everything.

How often have you felt certain about your judgment of someone else's actions? Could you benefit from giving others the benefit of the doubt, just as you would wish they'd do for you?

This approach not only fosters understanding and patience but also keeps you tethered to what’s true, rather than getting lost in the maze of assumptions.