Perception

I'm not one to make myself stand out. The idea of "tooting my own horn" in front of other people makes me feel uncomfortable. That is why only my husband and other bloggers knows about this blog. I'm working on stretching my comfort zone.

I work with a number of people who are very versed in announcing every single event in their lives as the most significant that could possibly be happening. That behaviour is a turn off for me though it has served as a mirror revealing my most opposite stance.

Rallying for public support of my ideas has not been where I've spent my life energy. Perhaps I am afraid of rejection. Perhaps I'm too busy living and building to worry about it.

So on the surface, I probably give off an intensely serious energy that I'm all business, especially at work. The pockets of people I interact with as friends, colleagues, bloggers or others I meet through my extra curricular activities would get to see the different facets of me.

What got me onto this topic were a few recent comments.

At the office, we've had a number of new staff start and they are just getting to know everyone and their practice style. One of them offered me a ride home the other night and commented that she has seen me walk home and she goes right by there.

I told her thanks very much, but I enjoy walking. The look of pity was unmistakable. It never occurred to me that walking was something to be pitied. Perhaps she thought I did not own a car. Even if that were the case (I'm working on it...), I would not think to pity someone because they didn't own a set of wheels either.

Those who know about our leisure lifestyle (my husbands colleagues) find it really strange that we would opt for no cable, cell phone plan or satellite service. It seems to create a lifestyle disconnect for them.

Perhaps in order to own vacation properties and a nice house means I have to have all the "rest" of the "normal" stuff as a prerequisite to the "bigger dream"? Seeing someone doing it any other way would not make sense? Or is it simply that no one does anything they feel is wrong? So one feels challenged when faced with difference?

A coworker of my husband's (someone I've never met) asked him if I had a busy practice. D answered yes, it is fairly busy. She is working the hours she wants (part time) and makes enough to support our lifestyle. She replied that she would have a problem going to a health care practitioner who drove an old car like mine (1997).

Her dentist's parking lot is apparently littered with Porsches, Audis and BMW's owned by the group of dentists. Until now, I had never considered what cars my health care practitioners drove. If anything, I would think a bigger, glitzier place would mean higher fees to pay for higher rent and lifestyle of the practitioners!

Normally, I do not think about how I am perceived by those who do or do not know me. I tend to be most comfortable operating in stealth mode. I don't flaunt what recognition I do get.

When faced with differing views, I just look up temporarily from what I am doing, register the comment, get amused by the interpretation (most of the time) and continue on my way.

Have you experienced other people's resistance to your way of life? If so, how did you handle t?

Laura at Move to Portugal wrote a guest post about how she didn't tell anyone about their plan to pay off the mortgage quickly in order to realize their dream.