7 seconds. That’s how long it takes us to judge something based on a first impression. And in this crazy digital age, many people don’t have the attention span to allow even the eighth second to pass.
(Some of you stopped reading this right about here…)
We live in a world where we can carry around a phone that delivers ONLY the content that we already know we like and are interested in. Our News Feeds only give us news on what we want to see from other people, and programs like Netflix do the work for us with “You may also like…” suggestions.
After the first page of a book, after the first minute of a movie, after the first 7 seconds with a human being, most of us may decide that we don’t like what we see and will close our minds off from it forever.
With another human being, we may deny ourselves years of an enduring, complex, and introspective relationship because, in our selfish 7 seconds, we decided this person won’t do for us.
With a book or a movie, we may lose the opportunity to explore someone else’s mind and learn something new about the world, or even about ourselves.
How about not going on what we though was “a boring trip” or trying something new? Did we deny ourselves one of our critical, defining moments in life because we thought it wouldn’t be our thing?
And what is this fear that if we spend an hour or a day with something, we might not like it? “Oh, that was SUCH a waste of time!” Why? Just because we don’t like something, it doesn’t mean it can’t make us a better person, or get us to acknowledge a new perspective. And, after giving something a fair try, at least we can logically explain why we don’t like it, and in doing so, we have still learned something about ourselves that made the time worth it.
Ignore the myth that life is too short. Some of my days feel like a lifetime. You have plenty of time, and billions of “7 seconds” to give. Get past those 7 seconds. There is a beautiful and tragic world out there and in your mind. Fill up your life with, well…life.
(Some of you stopped reading this right about here…)
We live in a world where we can carry around a phone that delivers ONLY the content that we already know we like and are interested in. Our News Feeds only give us news on what we want to see from other people, and programs like Netflix do the work for us with “You may also like…” suggestions.
After the first page of a book, after the first minute of a movie, after the first 7 seconds with a human being, most of us may decide that we don’t like what we see and will close our minds off from it forever.
With another human being, we may deny ourselves years of an enduring, complex, and introspective relationship because, in our selfish 7 seconds, we decided this person won’t do for us.
With a book or a movie, we may lose the opportunity to explore someone else’s mind and learn something new about the world, or even about ourselves.
How about not going on what we though was “a boring trip” or trying something new? Did we deny ourselves one of our critical, defining moments in life because we thought it wouldn’t be our thing?
And what is this fear that if we spend an hour or a day with something, we might not like it? “Oh, that was SUCH a waste of time!” Why? Just because we don’t like something, it doesn’t mean it can’t make us a better person, or get us to acknowledge a new perspective. And, after giving something a fair try, at least we can logically explain why we don’t like it, and in doing so, we have still learned something about ourselves that made the time worth it.
Ignore the myth that life is too short. Some of my days feel like a lifetime. You have plenty of time, and billions of “7 seconds” to give. Get past those 7 seconds. There is a beautiful and tragic world out there and in your mind. Fill up your life with, well…life.