It is the peculiar quality of a fool to perceive the faults of others, and to forget his own.

Other people’s faults arrive with full visibility and no excuses; your own come with context, reasons and a history that makes them look smaller. The asymmetry is standard equipment, not a rare defect, which is why anyone can list a colleague’s failings and not their own. The sharper your eye for others, the more competent the blindness feels. Clarity about others is no evidence of clarity about yourself.

For a week, each time you notice a fault in someone, ask where the same thing shows up in you. There is usually a version of it wearing better clothes. Ask one person who knows you well what they would name first.