“Self-Consciousness is the enemy of interestingness" a lovely
quote by Malcolm Gladwell... Not just the enemy of interestingness
but basic integrity... We, human beings, are known to fudge facts on varying
proportions when something affects our self-image.
It is very easy to put this theory to test. Walk up to an
image conscious person who is obese /on the heavier side and give him
a lecture on diet, food habits and exercise.
In just 30 sec into the discussion, you will see his self defense mechanism
in full action. He will claim to have adopted the healthiest diet for the last
one week and you will hear healthy food items like low calorie
cereals, carrot, greens. When it comes to the exercise you will
hear tall claims like regular visits to the gym, 7 km on treadmill, regular
walks and what not… These tall claims quickly expose the person because it is
easy to judge the truth in the statement based on the body language.
Honestly, I believe that the person who fabricates this story is
not fully aware that he is fudging facts... When self-image is put to test even
the smallest of the efforts in the right direction (visit to them gym once in 5
days) gets represented to gargantuan proportions in the mind and it appears as
if the person is very sincere in his fitness regimen. The self defense mechanism
is in full action because:
1. It wants to protect the self-image at any
cost.
2.
Pacify
the mind that things are under control
3.
Stop
the other person from any further advice.
Best way to handle this to first realize that white lies will get
exposed quickly. Instead of protecting self-image for today/everyday, it’s
better to realize that protecting self-image at the cost of action/activity is
futile...
