Di is standing in for Melanie again this week. Here is her question.

Today my question is about first impressions. You never get a second chance to make a first impression, but how about first impressions on you?
Whether it’s on a blind date, an interview, or meeting the new significant other’s parents, how do you react if the person isn’t how you imagined? Do you try to find some common ground, simply be polite, or shrug your shoulders?

If I get a negative first impression of a person and I know I won’t be meeting them again I can be polite and just shrug my shoulders after they have gone. It used to make me very nervous if I felt an interviewer didn’t like me when I applied for a job. It’s not an issue now of course but as I got older, I definitely worried about it less and that probably helped me at interviews a little.

If it’s someone I’m going to have to deal with again it’s more of an issue. I hope that my first impression was not a true one. Maybe they were having a bad day if they seemed rude or bad tempered. It is annoying that they would act that way with me if it was something else that was bothering them but people do that sometimes. I’m willing to see whether they are different the next time we meet.

If I’m going to have to deal with a person who appears to be grumpy, stupid or exhibits some other negative behaviour I’ll try to find some common ground and not let myself get angry or upset because that won’t help.