We can make mistakes at any age.Some mistakes we make are about money.But most mistakes are about people.One might say, "Did Jerry really care when I broke up with Helen?" "When I got that great job, did Jim really feel good about it, as a friend? Or did he envy my luck?" When we look back, doubts like these can make us feel bad. Why do we go wrong about our friends? Sometimes what people want to say hides their real meaning.And if we don't really listen, we miss the feeling behind the words.Suppose someone tells you, "You're a lucky dog." Is he really on your side? If he says, "You are a lucky guy", that's being friendly.But if he says "a lucky dog", there's a bit of envy in those words.Maybe he doesn't see it himself.But he puts you down a little if he brings in the "dog".What he may be saying is that he doesn't think you deserve your luck. "Just think of all the things you have to be thankful for" is another noise that says one thing and means another.It could mean that the speaker is trying to get you to see your problem as part of your life as a whole.But is he trying to? Wrapped up in this phrase is the thought that your problem isn't important.It's telling you to think of all the starving people in the world when you haven't got a date for Saturday night. How can you tell the real meaning behind someone's words? One way is to take a good look at the person talking.Do his words fit the way he looks? Does what he says agree with the tone of voice, his posture, or the look in his eyes? Stop and think.The minute you spend thinking about the real meaning of what people say to you may save another mistake. Therefore, when you hear someone saying, please try to know what he really means.Don't just listen to what he says with your ears but feel the words he uses with your head.In this way you may make fewer mistakes. According to the author, the reason why we go wrong about our friends is that
we fail to listen carefully when they talk people tend to be angry when we check what they say people usually state one thing but mean another we tend to doubt what our friends say