I’m about to begin a collage project and was in search of old magazines.

So I said to the receptionist, “Do you have any magazines you no longer need?”

She looked at me and said, “Yes, I think we have some ‘old-people’ magazines in the waiting room.”

Granted, I am plenty old enough to be the young woman’s father, but I definitely felt some pain at being instantly classified as aged.

Happily, when she returned two minutes later and handed me a stack of old, People Magazines, I realized my mistake and we had a good laugh together.

It’s easy to make assumptions … about why the prospect hasn’t called us back, why the client’s email felt less friendly than usual, or why people are treating us in a certain way.

When possible, I try to come up with other explanations before making up a story that may be far from accurate.