George Washington. (1732-1799), the father of the United States and its first commander in chief, once said: "Be courteous with all, but intimate with few, and let those few be well tried before you give them your confidence." I agree wholeheartedly with Washington, particularly when it comes to the workplace. Yes, we should be polite to and respectful toward all those with whom we cross paths. What we should not do, however, is give away our trust too easily. Never confide in someone until he or she has earned your trust. Many of us have trusted people we thought we could rely upon, only to get severely burned. It has made us think twice about doing everything from giving a potential partner our heart to discussing personal details about our lives with coworkers. Everyone we meet should be vetted. Unfortunately, many of us let our emotions guide us in our daily interactions with people. We form positive impressions of people without really knowing them that well....

Or so it seems... Have you noticed that many people only seem to show interest in you when you show little to none in them? It's like the pendulum has to swing one way or the other. Achieving equilibrium isn't easy, whether we're talking about friendships or relationships. The key reason why this happens is because human beings not only have a tendency to become complacent in their friendships or relationships, but they often take the other person for granted. Once we see someone willing to bend over backwards for us, we perceive it as weakness and try to exploit that vulnerability as much as we can. I'm not saying all people do this, but many of us do. So what happens when you do the opposite -- that is, act indifferent?  The less emotionally invested one person seems to be, the more leverage he or she holds. In other words, he who cares least -- or is perceived as such -- has more power in the relationship. There's always going to be someone who compla...