Seven Little Things That Reveal a Lot About You to Others and You Don’t Realize It

#7. The three big ones: “Hello,” “Goodbye,” and “Thank you.”

Photo by Ben Weber on Unsplash

Small gestures are the ones that give us away the most.

Some gestures say more about us than any university degree, status, or social class we belong to.

Here are seven little things that give you away without realizing it.

1. How do you treat those over whom you have some advantage or authority? Especially the way you treat an older adult, a child, or a homeless person says a lot about you. Do you pay attention when an older adult asks you for directions on the street or pretend to be in a hurry? Are you patient when the kids of someone make noise in the restaurant? Do you look the other way and act clueless when passing a homeless person? What you do in those cases tells others if you are patient and generous or a rude egoist.
2. Your relationship to the word “No.” Your reaction to rejection says a lot about you. Do you take refusals with sportsmanship, or do you get frustrated or angry? Do you give up at the first no, or do you persist in refuting objections? Do you accept defeat cordially, or can you not hide your anger? In addition to how you react to life’s “no’s,” knowing what you say “no” defines your…