Change your Perceptions- #Break Stereotype

“I’m breaking stereotypes based on appearance by sharing my experience for the #IAmCapable activity at BlogAdda in association with Nihar Naturals.”

We often quote the quotes, “Looks are Deceptive”, “Never judge a book with its cover”, “Don’t judge a person by their clothes”, we keep saying these things but in practice, we don’t adhere to it…this is the case with maximum people…exceptions are not included in this list.

We judge people by their looks and arrive at a conclusion at a rapid pace and carve an opinion for that person in the back of our mind and it is not easy to erase out. It persists for a longer period of time and blocks our vision to see through the facts.

I find the words of Wayne Dyer very true in this context,

“Judgements prevent us from seeing the good that lies beyond appearances.” – Wayne Dyer

The opinion that we arrive at are not easy to wave off but there are many instances which clearly proves that don’t go by appearance, search for the real self of that person inside. The opinions are formed for both the sexes on the basis of looks but today we are going to deal with the fair sex community, she is more chased and it’s natural because she is the “stimulant,” a turn on factor for men and even for a women.

Don’t misinterpret my words, I have used the word “stimulant” for a women on a positive note.

We see a girl in shorts or jeans and arrive at a decision that she is unruly and not traditional which the case isn’t normally. The attire is a personal choice and it has nothing to do with morality or one’s achievement…I believe.

When I was in High School, our Principal introduced us to a lady teacher who was assigned as our Physics teacher. I have done my schooling from convent school where emphasis is on the ways to be presentable in addition to the studies. The teacher that entered our class was clad in a typical old fashioned sari with big prints all over, those days fine prints sari were in vogue. We all were disgusted by her looks and had concluded that she was not fit to be our teacher. Our brains had worked on the idea of appearance and we could not gaze further and even ridiculed our Principal for choosing her.

When she took to teaching, we were bewitched by her expressions and our heart went crazy for her. Her pronunciations, convincing power and method of teaching was exquisite. We exchanged glances among school mates and all wore the same expressions and whole class was impressed by her and after class, we high fived and exclaimed loudly in unison, “Wow, looks are deceptive and it holds true for Mrs.Gupta. Our expressions echoed in the school corridor and our Principal was standing in the class…Awww…it was our chance of getting punished for been unruly. She broke the myth of stereotype and gradually she changed her style of dressing and mingled with the group and became one of the smart looking teachers.

Once, I too was a victim because of my Tomboyish style of dressing. Till tenth, I was more or less a Tomboy and followed my own set of rules. I used to be clad in jeans and loose top and chose to sit on the table tops rather than taking seat on chairs. I was very dominant…still residue of dominance is left and been fan of Amitabh Bachchan, tried to copy his angry young man style voice…elders scorned at me with fiery eyes…I do remember their looks, it appeared to be taken from a horror movie. The icing of the cake was I flew kites with boys, played cricket and pitto and was more found in the companies of boys. Few submissive gals were afraid of me or rather their parents were afraid to befriend me.

You can well imagine my sketch embossed in the eyes of people around, be it men or women. They were sure that I cannot fit in the realms of a womanhood and farfetched were the chances that I could be versatile in the domains of household. The picture was sketched in the eyes of onlookers on account of my dressing style but my family were well aware of my best qualities and I was rich in managing all spheres of life. I could clean the toilet all by myself and the same hands moved on the steering behind the wheels. The Tomboy had inherited all the qualities of a woman and a man, adept in management skills of managing outer world, generally in our society, we look upon men for outer activities, but with me, I am self-sufficient, rear a child well all by myself and manage a disorderly crowd. #Break stereotypes #IAmCapable!

I never advocate the view of been Single, but I can manage all single handed.

The onlooker’s perception changed when I grew up to be a responsible person managing all spheres. Many pinched themselves to make them believe that I was the same Tomboy. I broke the ice of been stereotyped and would request all that don’t judge a person by their looks. Do read a book, don’t judge by its cover.

Not only men, even women pass their judgments on one’s appearance and don’t try to look within or see through.

It’s time to break the perceptions based on the looks and gaze the potency of a person within.

Every outfit carries a subtle message for people who pass judgments, and women are forced to adhere to the image that their appearance creates.

Not just experience, but even statistics say the same. Take a look at some of the startling figures that the Nihar Naturals #IAmCapable survey conducted by Nielsen India reveals:

a. 69% of men agree that their judgement of women is based on their looks.

b. 64% of women agree that the judgments passed on them have affected their ability to reach their true potential.

c. 70%of women agree that majority of judgments on women are from family members or friends rather than strangers.

d. 72% of women agree that working women face more judgments on their looks or their clothes than housewives.

Image Credits: here

Video: here