“Technically, we treated you fairly.”

It’s no wonder this phrase doesn’t feel very good.

If you’re going to treat someone fairly, it’s best to do it from the start — woven together with solid communication and aligned expectations.

We can quantify fairness in numbers, but a big part of it has to do with perception. It’s a feeling. It’s a story people tell themselves.

If you have to show someone the data to convince them they’ve been treated fairly, you’re already behind the ball.