Hi! My name is Onur Can Özdemir, I am a painter.
You now have a first impression of who I am...
Have you ever stopped to consider how we form our first impressions on someone? How much data we gather from what little information given to us? How inaccurate most of it turn out to be?
If this introduction was off the page, at bar or a similar setting, face to face exchange, I would probably introduce myself with a few lines like this or to similar effect, hopefully more in the form of a dialogue than a statement. Most people do not think as they introduce themselves on the spot. Introductions are not carefully thought out, they are almost automatic statements we make, opening us up for further conversation. Yet they are designed over time to give a surprisingly broad range of data indirectly of things like our socio-economic status, education and our ethnic background. If the introduction is face to face our clothing, appearance and style add to this effect too.
Re-read that line and focus on the image above. Just for fun try to make predictions as to what sort of life I lead, write them down if you can. You will be surprised as to the things you can come up with without me saying anything else. Even now you can make assumptions (not saying it is a good idea to) as to my age, income, sexuality, education and so on...
Most people within the first few lines we exchange use greeting of some sort, a name (Mine I am aware is a nightmare to pronounce, for anyone who doesn't speak Turkish), and some sort of descriptive information, perhaps something related to the context we are in. As a part of your introduction you may find yourself using lines like "I am twenty two", "I like your hat", "great party", "No thanks! I am a lesbian" depending on the context of the encounter you are having. Most people will give some sort of frivolous piece of information to help our party remember us, an anchor. So that the next time we meet you may say something like "Oh, the painter guy, with the funny name". We all do this dance each time we meet someone new. In fact I just used a similar introduction earlier today, which is why I chose this line.
The tiny introductions such as these seem simple on the surface and seamlessly combine an earnest way of introducing and imprinting yourself to memory, together. These introductions will come to most of us automatically, in fact most of the time I catch myself thinking of something else as I am introducing myself. And we have all honed our introductions over a lifetime. We started with simple things like "I am six", "I am a 5th grader" and worked our way up. Introductions are designed and are extremely effective in creating the first impression we want (albeit consciously or subconsciously) to give . Lending power to idiosyncrasy I can only reveal how my carefully constructed my introduction actually is even without me thinking about it, and also how inherently flawed it is.
Lets break if down.
"Hi! My name is Onur Can Özdemir, I am a painter."
First of all I chose the word "Hi" instead of "hello" or "greetings". I chose this to look more amiable and to represent myself a certain way. If instead of "hi" I were to say something like "salutations" it would send all sorts of alarm bells to the person I am talking to. Frankly, I like "salutations" more, and technically there is nothing wrong with it, but I am not a 19th century Englishman it would be out of place for me to say it. We crave consistency, especially on unfamiliar territory. This is tied to a more primal desire. Safety. A simple "hi" is more friendly, youthful and it "fits" with me.
Allow me to clarify, I am not saying being different is negative in any way. In fact I feel complimented when my friends call me odd or weird, which they most often do. I know I stand out with certain characteristics, and I cherish them. But over the years I have shaved these differences off, if only during my introduction and speech, as I discovered how functional is to be able to "blend in" when necessary. This was my personal preference, it is no better than doing the exact opposite and standing out.
