Men use thought only as authority for their injustice, and employ speech only to conceal their thoughts.

Reasoning usually runs backwards. You arrive at what you want first, then assemble the argument that makes it defensible, and the argument feels like the cause rather than the decoration it is. Speech does similar work, offering a version of your thinking that is fit to be heard rather than the thinking itself. Not everyone does this constantly, but everyone does it more than they notice.

The test is to state your conclusion, then write the strongest case against it and see whether anything moves. If nothing could move it, you were not reasoning. Try saying the unpolished version of what you think to one person you trust.