# Who Should I Trust?

The extent to which I trust people is very connected to how hopeful I am 
about humanity. Whenever someone breaks my trust, it indirectly affects 
how I look at people. I have had many experiences in my life that could 
have resulted in me giving up on humanity. The problem is that by doing so, 
it can kill you bit by bit from the inside. From an evolutionary 
perspective, our purpose is very linked with others. If you would compare 
society with a human being for example, each cell in our body could be seen 
as an individual. And just as much as the design of our cells evolved to 
help us, our social needs and drives evolved to help society. If you then 
take away the trust in others from the equation, we disconnect ourselves 
from our larger purpose and partially from the reasons for our existence. 
That is also why some people feel like there is nothing to live for when 
there is no one they care for. Since this is greatly defined by how we look 
at ourselves, the best way I have found to cope with these experiences is 
by using myself as a reference. As long as I can still trust myself, others 
will be able to trust me and I don't have to lose hope. That doesn't mean 
we should start trusting everyone. Being naive can expose you and damage 
your outlook in life. The idea that you cannot trust anyone and it's 
everyone for themselves, on the other hand, can also greatly impair the 
ways you're able to look at life.