I had a job interview on Friday. As I was getting ready to leave for the day, I couldn’t help but think that I was lying to my potential employer. It seemed sort of misleading to allow them to believe that I actually wear eye shadow every day, but I decided to wear the peep-toe kitten heels anyway. At least my blazer was a little bit too long. When I bought the jacket the idea was to get it altered to fit my short torso, but I never got around to actualizing this thought. Maybe this small detail let the interviewer know that, regarding style and my personal appearance, I do not completely have it all together nor do I give much heed to it.
But they say that first impressions are important, so perhaps they overlooked this faux pas; maybe it was overpowered by my sincere smile that showed my positive attitude, my resume that displayed my qualifications, and my words that revealed my competency . . . maybe. What qualities make a good first impression? What makes someone think that you are qualified for a job, that you will be a good friend, that you are “the one?” How often are we correct; how often do we misjudge? Isn’t being very organized sometimes a manifestation of obsession, doesn’t quietness sometimes appear to be snobbishness, can’t controlling mask itself with chivalry?
Yet often we make decisions and judgments based on brief encounters with people. Sometimes we are forced to. These decisions can be lasting – I refuse to listen to a Taylor Swift song based on a snotty comment she made at some award show, despite the fact that I enjoyed the “Tim McGraw” song that won her the award. Sometimes the choice you’ve made in fifteen minutes can change your life, or the other person’s, or yours together, forever . . . or at least until you make another choice to find another job or hang out with someone new or break things off. And even if we do overcome this initial notion, occasionally you will remember that you first thought that one of your closest friends was a bitch, albeit with a shared laugh.
So how do we make these choices?? I suppose we trust our instincts, or ignore them, and give someone a chance despite the blazer that is a bit too long for her . . . and, there will always be other chances to get it right.
