first impressions and being open.

"Setting an example is not the main means of influencing others, it is the only means."
-Albert Einstein

So for some reason I've been thinking about impressions lately. I think its because I work in a hotel and I get a chance to meet a lot of different people that give off a lot of different impressions. It makes me think of how influencing our impressions are on other people. Do we ever realize what kind of impression we are making on other people? I don't think that I realize what kind of impression I leave on people. Is it a good impression? I would love to think that I always make a good impression on people but what if I really don't? I think an impression is something that lasts far longer than just a phsyical presence. It's a memory that is either good or bad and memories can last forever. What type of memories am I giving people?

I think that we often don't have enough patience with people after we judge them by their first impression. I know a lot of people that turned out to be really great people even though I might not of gotten the best first impression from them. Everything we say, everything we wear, basically everything we do makes an impression and an influence on someone else.

To me the most powerful impressions are the ones that people give off when they don't think they are being watched. It's kindof funny I like to watch people, I call it peoplewatching -dont worry I dont do it in a creepy spying type of way though haha. I just think you can learn a lot by what someone does when they think no one is watching them. Or by little things like how the react to something or how they react to what you say or what you do. Every once in a while I just do things to see how people will react to it, its very interesting. To me I am much more inspired by someone unknowinlgy setting a good example than I am by some loud preacher trying to tell me what to do. Peoples actions really do speak louder than their words, they are just more subtle to pick up on. This often makes me wonder what other people can tell about me by what I'm doing. What if I dont give off the best impression and what if they decided to think any less of me or even worse, they decided I wasn't a person worth getting to know?

It's never too late to make a new years resolution and I think my new one is to be more open with people. And I mean REALLY REALLY try to make an effort. Everybody has their own little "clique" or group of friends they associate with but I think it would be to everyone's benefit to open up to other people. Not just the same type of people they always hang out with but maybe a different "type" of person because maybe they aren't so different after all. Think about it, what if the next person you made an effort to connect with turned out to be your next best friend, or your future husband/wife, or maybe they just had something great to teach you that would make your life better. Or maybe just the other way around, maybe you have something wonderful to share with them to make their life better. Crazy to think about huh? But I guess thats the way it really happens. You would never know unless you took the time to get to know them. Everyone in the world has room for another type of friend, and there are many people in this world that are just looking for just one friend. Why not?