Who are you?

We all have a personal definition of who we are. Everyone usually thinks of themselves a certain way and generally we expect others to think of us in the same manner. This couldn't be farther from the truth. When dealing with people perception is law. You can do everything in your power to be a certain "type" of person, but if others don't see that in you then it doesn't exist.

I think of myself as nice, funny, professional, smart, artistic, confident and sometimes possessing a little bit of charisma/charm. I hope that the people around me see these same qualities in me and it fuels those traits to come out even stronger. However, I also understand that perceptions of a completely different nature can be formed and they can last for a very long time. All of the qualities that I mentioned above might be totally true but lets say I'm talking to some of my friends and someone overhears me telling an inappropriate joke or something like that; this could cause me to permanently be perceived as an asshole, jerk, racist, sexist, etc. This is what I'm talking about when I say perception is law.

You may think you are the sweetest person around, but if that is not how you are perceived, than it is only true in your head and you might be living a delusion. Everyone should take a minute to sit down and think about this. How do people see you? Are you consistently being perceived in a negative manner? If you are, most likely it is not the fault of everyone else. It is your fault. Not because you are a bad person. It is because those are the qualities you consistently show people.

Everyone has the capacity to become a better person. Instead of always focusing on what YOU think you need to do to better yourself, why don't you focus on what others think you need to do to better yourself. The benefits will be huge.