By Mick Holien
On a beautiful “go figure” kind of week’s start an observation: why do we tend to treat people differently when they initially cross our path?
And additionally don’t most have a tendency to become more open armed with strangers after we get to know them – I guess they wouldn’t then be strangers but …
Are we shy or maybe just indifferent?
Or maybe just unsure of the eventuality of strangers expanding our societal field.
Well at least that was the hypothesis I started thinking about after noticing during several recent encounters that customer service personnel that initially treated me even with indifference suddenly warmed up when they discovered maybe I possessed some community standing.
For years I have made the observation to friends that I knew a wide range of people only because of radio play-by-play and not because I endeared myself to a wide range of people.
But recently perusing an article in Psychology Today convinces that the opposite may well be true: We actually are nicer to strangers than the people we love the most.
And so what say you?
Does familiarity breed contempt or maybe as Mark Twain softened the old phrase by adding and children.
It could be argued, said Dr. Alex Luxkerman that it rather is a lack of tolerance for all things that we always dislike over time.
“We have the least tolerance for the negative qualities of those with whom we spend the most time,’ he said.
So just a couple of thoughts from the experts to ponder
Take a break, seems to be the answer for more than this malady.
And not because you want to increase your tolerance of the things that bug you.
Insraed out among a different community that variatably pulls that more generolus elf oput of you – such does experts say gives you a more balanced look at the relationship with loved ones.
And also to spend more time with your loved ones around other people.
Notice the difference…and I hope it works for you.
