What you see is not always what you get!!

I watched this really thought provoking advertisement...the product is Tata Sumo Grande MK II.  Certainly not a product that resonates with me. Not one that I follow, but the advertisement really made me think. Have a look at this.....http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=luLQl0oDJD4 . We measure folks by what we see. We often interpret people, situations and character based on the external signs. Our profiling of people and situations based on external characteristics can go wrong. Appearances can be deceptive. First impressions are not always right. What you see is not always what you get!!

While this is the generation of the one hour interviews and instant decisioning, it certainly has its perils.  I heard a story this weekend of how the first impression can go wrong, can go horribly wrong. One of our family friends had advertised in the local newspaper for a chauffeur. Some aspirants turned up and they chose the most polished and respectable looking gentleman to drive their car for them. This person provided them with credible references and even gave them a name and number of a reference check. Impressed with what he had presented them, this gentleman was employed in their service and started his chauffeur duties in the right earnest.

Two days into the job, the family friend had to leave town and the chauffeur dropped him off at the airport. The family friend's wife had gone to the airport with them and then had to stop some place for shopping. The chauffeur mentioned that he would park elsewhere as the nearest parking lot was crowded. He provided his mobile number to call on once she completed her shopping. On completion of shopping, while trying to reach the chauffeur, the mobile phone was unreachable. After a couple of hours, realization dawned that the chauffeur was probably missing. Gone missing with the car!!

On contacting the police and sharing details of the chauffeur, our family friends had the biggest shock of all. The so-called chauffeur was actually a car thief. The police mentioned that he must be miles away from the city and it was going to take a while if at all to trace him or the car. Worse still, he was a "well known" car thief and just out of jail a week earlier!! Now, before you start wondering about the reference he provided. Well, our family friends were quite taken in by the chauffeur that they had not called on the reference. If they had checked with the reference, they would have known earlier. The reference provided was the chief warden of the jail-house he had just been released from!!

I remind myself....don't be taken in by appearances. You can be fooled by first impressions. This story illustrates that. The Sumo advertisement says the same thing but stresses on the positives. Remember - what you see is not always what you get......external characteristics are just one thing, look for the vibrations, tune into the inner sonar!!