Making educated guesses about people so that we can predict their behaviour is one of the most important things we do as social animals. Even something as tiny as having visible pupils on white backgrounds in our eyes give humans an advantage over other creatures. If I’m sizing you up for fighting or fun for example I want to know if, and perhaps more importantly how, you’re looking at me. If it were all that simple though, we’d all be Derren Brown with our ability to 100% understand each other. Imagine that world!

Stop. Flip apps and set an alarm. It should go off the next time you’re in a social situation and remind you that you should take 30 short seconds to pause, breath and take a look around you. You’ll see the faces and postures of the social group, you’ll see conversation, you’ll see gestures and you’ll see people who seem secure and confident dominating those who seem nervous and meek. What if there was a way that you could simply and easily make sense of all this data? With practice there is, and playing cards can help you.

In every situation we have our own unique view. We make an interpretation of every event, every human, every interaction based on the angle with which we view it. Not in a literal sense of course. If we don’t like what someone’s saying, it doesn’t do much good to slip round the side and try it from there. They don’t like it when you do that. Your brain has an angle, a viewpoint, a level, and it’s that performance we watch, not anyone else’s – and here’s the thing – your angle might differ radically from the directors.

Keep writing. Keep going. Keep doing what you set out to do, despite the little voice, the tinge of fear, despite the agony of putting yourself on the line. Write faster than your fears can follow because it’s the only way to finish.