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A Simple and Effective Way to Be Instantly Likeable
To be honest, it's not for everyone
“You’re a grouch,” my beloved wife accused me, accusingly.
If there is one thing to turn me into a grouch, it’s being accused of being a grouch. Nobody likes it when people grumble about you being a grouch; it’s irritating—it’s a grima¹ on the mirror of self-reflection.
Slights are likely to offend. Offence was taken.
Once taken, the conversation is all too likely to descend into debate, a debate that deteriorates into argument, and arguments have a way of developing into something that both parties ruminate on obsessively for several hours.
I opted to ignore the jibe.
I said nothing. Reserved my judgment. Outwardly, I remained stoically unruffled. Sticks and stones may batter my self-esteem, but I’m not stripping off to show you the bruises.
Which was another fault.
“You are too insular,” she pointed out pointedly with her pointy finger.
“You mean introverted,” I replied, calmly and with authority. I said it in the way of a wordsmith who is self-aware, but not in the way of someone who is instantly likeable.
