One thing I try to do with students is to teach them about inferences, and then to teach them the difference between a good inference and a poor inference. Students may come up with far-fetched inferences, and rather than telling them that they are crazy or wrong, I just agree that this interpretation is possible, then I ask what else is possible.
Good inferences tend to be universal rather than idiosyncratic.
A particular reader may be allergic to sunflower seeds, and so the mere mention of sunflowers makes him ill. However, it would be a mistake to think that a poet who uses the word sunflower is intending to make all his readers ill. When we make inferences, we use our own experience as well as the evidence in the text. However, we need to acknowledge that certain of our experiences may be so unique that they may not have any bearing upon the author's intended meaning. More than one good inference can coexist with another even if they conflict.