I was have thinking 3 hard lessons about people that were the equivalent of hard earned [hence “hard learned] at various points this past festive season:

1. Emotional intelligence is ignoring what people say and watching what people do. More often it is what they do, not what they say, that speaks loudly.

2. When you have the privilege and luck of spending time with like-valued and like-minded people, you run into the danger of forgetting that there are a lot of very different kinds of people on the planet, some who choose meanness over kindness by default. And, a small minority who choose hate over every other emotion.

3. Every time we indulge in envying someone’s perceived success or wealth, it is worth reminding ourselves, things are not always what they seem.