Day 25 - Someone I judged by their first impression

I was supposed to post this yesterday but to be honest, this seems like a strange topic and I couldn't think of any examples.

I think we judge everyone by first impressions.  It's human nature to have instincts and opinions about people that we meet on the street or people who show up at our front door.  These instincts can keep us safe or warn us about possible threats or dangerous situations.  First impressions might not always be correct, but that doesn't mean it's wrong to go by our first impression.

It's when we refuse to keep an open mind that judging on first impressions becomes wrong.  If I come across someone who looks grungy and angry, my first impression is to stay away.  I judge (in my mind) that this is someone I don't want to associate with.  However, if for some reason I was forced to meet this person and talk with them, I try to keep an open mind and discover why they are the way that they are, and THEN I decide if I want to continue talking with them/getting to know them.  Sometimes our first impressions are correct, and sometimes they couldn't be more off.

Sometimes I think that when people first meet me, like at Church or something, their first impression might be that I am snobby (in fact, I know this is the case because someone once told me this).  I do not usually approach people I don't know and introduce myself and ask questions about them.  The real reason for this is that I'm kind of shy.  I get really insecure about myself when I am in situations where I don't know many people, so I keep to myself or to the people I know.  For example, if there is another mom at the park with her kids, I am not very likely to approach her and talk because I'm just shy.  It's too bad, too, because last week I was at a park in Richmond with the kids and another mom was there with her 3 kids.  About 20 minutes after our kids started playing together (and about 5 minutes before we left), I finally started talking to her and getting to know her.  Turns out she is LDS and we have a lot in common -- and I realize I missed an opportunity to really meet someone and get to know them.

So, I don't blame people for judging me on their first impression and thinking that I am snobby.  I hope people get over that first impression because I really am a great person to get to know (if I do say so myself), and I really appreciate when people approach me and spark up a conversation.  That being said, I'm trying to work on the way I come across when I first meet people, but it's not easy.

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Up tomorrow (or later tonight): Favorite books