Making a bad first impression is not necessarily your fault. You could be well dressed, have a great hair day, have good breath, and even have the best personality, but that mole behind your ear makes them think of their mean uncle and suddenly, their first impression of you is that you aren’t trustworthy and maybe even harmful.
That’s quite a jump in logic but it does happen. In the first segment of this episode, I talk about the first impression a listener got with this show and how he criticized every episode I’ve ever created by listening to one 15-minute segment in a single episode.
What do you do when that one person criticizes you or your work? How do you block or avoid the emotional pain behind such a thing?
In the second segment, I answer a message from a woman who is experiencing debilitating pain and is fighting her way to feeling better. She used to be active and on stage, and now she is jobless and lives with her father. Not only is there her physical pain, but also suffering through the embarrassment of her circumstances. She lies to friends just so they don’t know her situation.
In the last segment, I respond to a letter from someone who feels almost ashamed for staying with a toxic person. She’s afraid to leave because she thinks, “What if I can’t find a good man?” Her focus needs to change but she’s not sure how to do it. Depending on where your focus is, you’ll either stay where you are or make the changes you need to get out of the rut you’re in.