We are remarkably quick storytellers. Someone is late, and we think they don’t respect our time. A child doesn’t do what we asked, and we decide they weren’t listening. A teenager shrugs when we ask about school, and we assume they don’t care. A colleague asks question after question, and we decide they’re difficult. Someone doesn’t return a text, and before long, we’ve created an explanation for that, too.

You know you need to send the email. It probably won't take more than five minutes. You have thought about sending it at least six times. You may have even opened your email, stared at the message, and then somehow found yourself doing something else.

When I began conducting psychological evaluations more than 17 years ago, I thought a lot about answers. What is the diagnosis? What do the scores mean? Where are the strengths? Where are the weaknesses? What recommendations will help? Those questions still matter. They matter a great deal.