Compelling reasons not to try to impress others

Each of us is full of absolute indifference to the opinions of others, but periodically, we try to impress other people. Sometimes, it is due to the desire to join a new company, to be like a girl or a business partner. Circumstances make us try on masks and play roles.

Perhaps it is impossible to eliminate this because the world around you sees everything, hears everything, and remembers everything. No one can be a hundred percent himself at every moment.

So, pursuing approval can quickly become addictive, blurring the lines between who you are and the fake identities you try to live up to. Eventually, the masks will still be dropped after results are achieved or in the event of ultimate failure.

However, the desire to impress deforms or softens your personality forever, offering only temporary and entirely unguaranteed satisfaction.

6 compelling reasons not to try to impress others

1. Respect your boundaries

No one else will if you don’t guard your boundaries and respect your feelings. When faced with a person who treats you with prejudice and disdain, don’t try to change their mind. Don’t try to show off your inner peace, high level of intelligence, or unique skills. It won’t be appreciated according to your expectations.

But the inconsistency will sow hatred and disappointment in your soul. You get a not-so-pleasant set of emotions in exchange for nothing. No matter what you do or how good you are at it, there will always be people around who are ready to point out only your shortcomings. No amount of results will make them utter words of praise.

Wanting to impress will waste energy and time, and you may lose some of your self-confidence. So, keep your distance from people who are hostile toward you.

2. The right people need you to be real

It is better to be hated for who you are than loved for who you are not. Simple honesty makes any relationship healthier and strengthens it in the long run. You can become intimate with the person or quickly drift apart without wasting time with each other.

The thing is, your true self will still be revealed sooner or later. You will be accepted for who you are or not. It is a question of time, which can be stretched a little with the help of falsity. By being true to himself, a person lives the way he wants. His life becomes less about conformity and more about openness, freedom, and joy. This has almost no effect on one’s outlook, at least not unless you’re a politician or a showbiz star.

3. You’re the main man

Sometimes, we seek to impress someone, believing it will improve our lives. It may work, but it’s likely that the fake will be discovered. There is another, more effective method of achieving positive change.

It’s you and your actions. Your actions have a special meaning if you assert your right to be yourself. Do not underestimate this privilege. Some people bury their true selves so deeply that they are lost forever.

Then, no money can buy an exact copy. What you achieve in life depends first on you and only then on circumstances, traveling companions, and patrons. Your time and energy are the main resource that can change everything around you. The result depends on where you put your efforts.

4. Society will bid low

Wherever you find yourself, be it a metropolis or a small village, there are bound to be people who think they know best how to live your life. All their advice will boil down to one thing: you need to change. And change to conform to other people’s ideals.

Naturally, such a choice leads to a dead end. You still will not be good enough and worthy because no one cares about you. People like to give advice, be clever, and want to impress. Having fulfilled all the instructions and having changed to the level of the put-forward standards, you will receive a friendly pat on the shoulder.

This is all that society is ready to repay for maximum loyalty. That’s a bit of an understatement. Not being a master, a genius, or just the first guy in the village, but keeping sincerity, you are almost guaranteed to get more, although not immediately.

5. Nobody’s perfect

The more ambitious the goal a person sets, the more mistakes he will make. They are inevitable, and there is no reason to give the impression of a perfect strategist who never misses. Unless, of course, you’re a crook and trying to fool gullible onlookers.

You can only be suitable in some arguments. If you don’t see things through to the end, you won’t become a paragon of justice and a significant authority whose opinion will eclipse the wisdom of Aristotle. If you want to appear, you stop living, but if you live, you have no time to appear.

It’s up to you to decide what approach to take and what goals to set. Regardless of the choice, remember that it will be just as fake when some people want to impress you.

6. Life is not a race

Probably everyone wants to climb up on the pedestal, open a bottle of champagne under the camera flashes, and be surrounded by a crowd of journalists and fans. Lifting the trophy is a moment of total bliss. Then you celebrate for a few days, and it’s back to the race.

It goes on like that a few times until one day, your strength leaves you. You won’t make it to the finish line that day, but you’ll have time to take stock. The happiest and most important moments you happened not on the podium but in moving towards it.

You grow morally and professionally when you do something; not speed matters most, but persistence. Perseverance will help you reach your goal, but it’s finicky: if it senses falseness, it will leave you immediately, perhaps forever.