Blog Assignment 6: Managing Impressions

Managing Impressions

"Sticks and stones will break my bones, but names will never hurt me!" That is what my mother always said when I was a child. If names will never hurt you what about thoughts and judgments others place on you with their first impressions. These first impressions dictate how others feel about and treat you in return. This could be good or bad. 

Newman (2012) provided many examples of how first impressions can hurt you and/or play a role in altering your life's trajectory. For example, a person's physical appearance may affect  their employability and/or their level of pay. He referred to this as the "beauty premium." The magnitude of the impact that impressions was alarmingly drastic regarding the story of the man on trial for murder . I personally have few complaints about the repercussions my impressions make on my life but I was shocked and naive to learn that your "personal billboard" of tattoos can give the wrong impression to the point of playing a role in a murder conviction. Could you imagine going to jail if you were  an innocent person, just because of your first impression? It is very obvious that it does matter what others think. After all, we spend a considerable amount of  time, thought, and effort in managing impressions for many different reasons, in many different situations throughout our lifetime.

With that said I think it is important to differentiate and further define one of my "personal billboards" from a previous post.

 

This symbol and saying implies that it should not matter what others think about you. Overall, on the larger scale of things this still holds true for me. I interpret this as meaning "be true to yourself, first, others second." On the other hand, I think this symbol represents more about having a strong "self" within, a strong sense of self-concept and self-esteem, etc.

To bring this idea of "should or should it not matter what others think about you" together, I think that if a person is considered to be successfully managing their impressions they are probably getting desired outcomes in return. For example, if someone wants the desired outcome of being liked and approachable, they should not isolate themselves, or walk around with a frown on their face and have their arms crossed. I think this discrepancy of the impression put out there compared to this person's desired outcomes is an example of supporting the need to care about what others think because it will present a big clue that they need to make an adjustment in order to get their actions to match their desired outcome.s If a person does not pick up on these clues and miss out on this learning opportunity in life, they will ultimately have to live with the consequences of these first impressions they are conveying.

In contrast,  I think being "true" to yourself means that your actions, behaviors, and impressions that you "put out there" match and line-up with your desired outcomes. I think this picture and caption, "what matters most is how you see yourself" in a sense becomes satisfied when you see yourself a certain way and in turn the reactions, feedback, and treatment you get from others match. Newman (2012) indicates that this is the primary goal of impression management to portray yourself a certain way that improves your chances of optimizing the outcome in various situations. Managing impressions seems to provide the perfect foundation for making numerous self-fulfilling prophecies (positive and/or negative).

Reflecting on How I Manage Impressions

What lengths do you go to give the best first impression?

 

 

I feel that I am very consistent in managing impressions. I think that the impression I managed the most on a daily basis is I pride myself in being ladylike and feminine. I am always presentable, put together, wear makeup, always have my hair styled, and always smell nice. I also give the impression that health is important to me. The strategy I use to convey this message is by eating healthy, managing a healthy weight, and reflect a good level of physical fitness.

The running joke about me is that I must have a big sign on my forehead that says “tell me your life story in less than one minute of meeting me.” I must be doing a good job of managing the impression that I am very approachable, kind, and a good listener because people tend to tell me the darnedest things after just meeting me. This impression is made by my constant smile and open body language; people can also get a friendly impression of me by witnessing my hugging nature to friends and family. Additional strategies I perform to portray these impressions that provide me with favorable outcomes include a firm handshake, good eye-contact, and confident posture and stride. I am also very animated when I talk and tell stories by talking with my hands and facial expressions

Another way I manage my favorable impressions is when I meet people, I am genuinely interested in “hearing and listening” to what they have to say. I ask questions in response to what they are sharing. I am a respectful, bidirectional communicator. I like people and many of the impressions mentioned about me have aided me in creating a solid circle of interesting and positive people in my sphere of influence. All of which, continue to have a positive impact on my life.

At school I manage a "professional impression" by using strategies like being committed, hard-working, sincere, and having a more serious attitude. I have my moments, especially after I cross over from the first impression to the friendly classmate stage; I tend to bring out the more playful and carefree “Tonya.” This is evident through, camaraderie, friendly and funny bantering, small doses of sharing personal stories, and shared laughter and joking around. One thing that I have noticed being a non-traditional student that when I walk around without my backpack, I have been approached by students asking me a question because they thought I was a staff member. This does not happen when I am carrying my prop, aka my backpack. Props are very telling of roles.

Overall, I like to think I am flexible and adaptable to many different situations. I am true to myself and pleased with the many positive, desired, and expected outcomes in many different social situations while managing my impressions.

References

Newman, D. (2012). Sociology: Exploring the Architecture of Everyday Life: 9th Edition. SAGE Publications. (p.63-64)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tO-8p0TKow0