I think we may safely trust a good deal more than we do.

Most people run their suspicion at a setting higher than the evidence warrants. You guard against a betrayal that mostly does not come, and the guarding costs you in ease and in relationships that stay one layer shallower than they might. The rare person who takes advantage is real, but the running cost of expecting them everywhere is usually larger than the loss you avoid. Caution is not free just because its price is invisible.

Extend one piece of trust this week that you would normally withhold. Tell someone the thing you were going to keep back, or let a task go without checking it. Notice what actually happens.