Not too long ago I had an encounter with a friend that didn’t exactly play out the way I thought it would. My friend’s reaction to what I had to share was unexpected and even wounded me a bit. In that moment of vulnerability and hurt there were so many things racing through my mind I wanted to say (out of pride or self-defense), but didn’t.

It quickly became evident I saw the situation from a different perspective than her. A big part of me wanted to defend myself and rationalize my side of the story, but I didn’t. Something inside me told me not to go that route. Something in me told me it was more important to keep our friendship somewhat intact than to be ‘right’ or prove myself.

In the end, it was more important to be kind than to be right.

I’ll be the first to admit that I don’t always follow through on this formula, but when I do it keeps me from having to play clean up.

Relationships are a delicate thing and most often are not worth losing over a point of contention. Are you battling to be ‘right’ or are you battling to love your friends better?