Impressions

“You never get a second chance to make a first impression.”

I honestly don’t know this, it may be true it may not be, but I think I suck at first impressions.

When I meet someone new, I have such a hard time giving them a real taste who I am.

I am apprehensive in conversation.

I am composed in body language.

I am stoic in emotion.

I am big in stature.

People most likely believe I am the most unapproachable person alive.

That is purely my judgement of myself. I do believe that depending on the situation and the person’s mindset going into a situation, the way they perceive you is going to be completely different.

Here is the problem:

I HATE THAT FIRST IMPRESSIONS MATTER SO MUCH.

Your initial impression of a person will dictate if you continue to talk to them or reach out to them. It could make or break a relationship.

I believe that everyone deserves multiple chances.

I know personally I am not the same person the first time meeting someone that I am the tenth time seeing a person. Typically, the relationship gets deeper and deeper each time. With that, it becomes more and more comfortable.

What if rather than judging so much on the first impression, you recognized that you are not at your best the first time either? And if you are at your best the very first time you meet someone, I’m sorry, but they can’t have much more to look forward to in the relationship.

I LIKE HAVING MY EXPECTATIONS BLOWN OUT OF THE WATER.

I like when I meet someone for the first time, have low expectations because of the first impression, then that person absolutely eradicates my perception of who I thought they were.

I like being surprised.

But not everyone is like this. Some people are so stuck once they meet someone that the person will not become any different from the person they first met in their mind. They judge so much on the first impression that they personally fill in all the blanks for every other attribute that the person possesses and create someone they don’t like in their head.

I know it’s true because I’ve done it.

Hell, I’ve seen people from afar and found my mind trying to create a false narrative about that person because my brain wants answers for why they look the way they do.

LET THEM MAKE AN IMPRESSION FOR THEMSELF. DON’T MAKE IT FOR THEM.

The biggest mistake you can make is developing a story for a person in your head before you actually hear their story.

One of the biggest fears you have is the fear of the unknown. The fear of not knowing something. It terrifies you to admit you don’t know.

So what do you do?

You try to fill in the blanks.

You make stories up.

You do all you possibly can to make yourself understand.

But really, you shouldn’t know until you actually find out.

You need to be more okay with not knowing. You need to pursue the answer rather than make up the answer. The more you continue to make up answers in your head, the more you will continue living the same old boring life and never have your mind changed about anything.

MINDS ARE MEANT TO BE BLOWN.

I love having my mind blown. When I am told something I thought the exact opposite about prior, I am shocked. It feels good to be surprised. It’s a good change from the ordinary.

Keep your mind open and it will be blown.

Two things about impressions:

YOU CANNOT COMPLETELY CONTROL THE IMPRESSION YOU HAVE ON OTHERS.

That is completely up to them to perceive you. You can influence their impression, but you can’t control it. So quit trying to.

DON’T LET YOUR IMAGINATION CONTROL YOUR IMPRESSION OF OTHERS.

If it’s not the truth, don’t let it be the truth in your head. Let every person and experience be taken in naturally. The more you develop a story in your mind, the more you will be let down and the more you will not allow your mind to see it how it really is.

Let them be blank until they are filled in.

Let the impressions be made.

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Thank you for reading!

My goal is to inspire self-improvement in others through my personal stories and experiences.

This is The Exploration.