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[Kinitari]

I don't want to say people might think I look intimidating, which I don't really...but I can't find a better word. People assume I'm "standoff-ish" you know? But I'm actually pretty damn approachable/nice.

I have the opposite effect on people. I assume everyone is going to think I am this un-approachable person, but I have been told repeatedly I have an extremely approachable face, whatever that means.

An example of how that approachability plays out is, lets say I am at a bus stop with 10-20 other people, a tourist will pick me out and ask me for directions or whatever. Or another example is one time I was walking through the seedy ravine, and these young girls were sliding down the hill (winter) on pieces of cardboard. They were all alone and I figured it would freak them out having me appear out of some dark trees, instead they ran up to me, asked me if I wanted to borrow their hobo-sleds to get down the hill faster. These are boring examples but I literally have so goddamn many. I like it, I think people assuming I am approachable has made me more approachable.

 

[Lissar]

Yeah, but by other girls? You'd think they'd know better.

If only this were the case. There is still a lot of "queen bee" syndrome where women view other women as competition. Not just in nerd groups, but even in the workplace. Women are subconsciously terrified of being ousted and end up undermining others even though it goes against the interests of women as a whole.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323884304578328271526080496.html

It's an unfortunate situation that still needs a lot of work. :s

 

[Vicetrailia]

Yup. I'm black and look "preppy" or whatever word describes the "you're the good type, not the bad type black guy".

Black women think I only like white chicks.
White chicks think i'm that "good" kind of black guy.

Whatever, I can't complain because its beneficial on all sides.

 

[JimmyRustler]

I'm 6'5, Croatian decent, lift, have a very deep voice and lately grew a beard. What do you guys think?

I walked through HongKong streets at night without anyone bumping into me. I challange you to try that.

 

[Aesius]

People always assume I'm a douchey frat guy.

 

[SpartanForce]

I'm 6'5, Croatian decent, lift and lately grew a beard. What do you guys think?

we need pics

 

[Fivefold]

I've often been labeled "the hot guy,"

Man, don't we all hate when this happens. Neogaf problems...

 

[Majmun]

I've often been labeled "the hot guy," and while that sounds nice it's frustrating when you're trying to get people to value other aspects besides your looks. They don't even listen to you. It's like you're an object, some kind of other thing. I have a coworker who calls me Fabio, and I'm sure it's in good fun, but every time it feels like a jab.

Good looks can be a curse sometimes, I know. Especially when they only see the looks and are not interested in the other things you can offer.

The compliments were nice during high shool and college, but now I don't care about my looks anymore. I have more qualities to offer.

Maybe I'm just projecting now, because when I see a hot chick, I don't care if she's smart or not. I just want to have sex ;_;

 

[CrocMother]

As a teen I had terrible acne, braces, bad haircut. I suppose I aged well , but my social skills and confidence don't live up to my outward appearance sometimes I feel.

 

[JimmyRustler]

we need pics

I don't post face pics on the internet, sorry.

 

[ChubbyHuggs]

People assume I'm a lazy stoner.

 

[Kurita]

i'm black and 6'1

ya play basketball?

 

[Salvor.Hardin]

People often think I'm a complete asshole frat douche bag until they get to know me. It's not just based on how I look, but also how I dress which is really unfair. I prefer polos, khakis, blazers and suits. I also have a short clean hair style and a prominent jaw.

The real problem is that I enjoy hanging out with the artsy type, from musicians to painters. But there's always a bit of a barrier given my sartorial nature. I wish people weren't so quick to judge sometimes.

 

[soepje]

People confused me for being American.

 

[-Pyromaniac-]

I have the opposite effect on people. I assume everyone is going to think I am this un-approachable person, but I have been told repeatedly I have an extremely approachable face, whatever that means.

An example of how that approachability plays out is, lets say I am at a bus stop with 10-20 other people, a tourist will pick me out and ask me for directions or whatever. Or another example is one time I was walking through the seedy ravine, and these young girls were sliding down the hill (winter) on pieces of cardboard. They were all alone and I figured it would freak them out having me appear out of some dark trees, instead they ran up to me, asked me if I wanted to borrow their hobo-sleds to get down the hill faster. These are boring examples but I literally have so goddamn many. I like it, I think people assuming I am approachable has made me more approachable.

yeah I see. For me it depends on my mood. If I'm in a mehh mood I'll be dropping death stares for no reason. If I'm in a good or decent mood I think people find me approachable.

 

[Chet Rippo]

People always come up to me in class asking me how to do this or that. Fuck if I knew, I wouldn't be taking this class!

 

[highrider]

No, my looks pretty much reflect who I am.

.

 

[Lovely Salsa]

I'm 6'5, Croatian decent, lift, have a very deep voice and lately grew a beard. What do you guys think?

You're a silverback gorilla? What are we supposed to think?

 

[Chuckie]

Yes. People constantly think I am super pissed off and/or agressive..while that is just my neutral face and I am just minding my business.

 

[BrightEyedPanic]

I have tattoos. Those usually carry some unwarranted stigma. I don't really look ethnic, though I'm not white nor do I look like a generic white girl, somehow I get people that to speak different languages to me. I often get "you're too young to remember ..." When I'm closer to their age than they think.

 

[Daingurse]

ya play basketball?

Hate that horse shit. Without fail I get asked that, it's very annoying.

 

[A.E Suggs]

Hate that horse shit. Without fail I get asked that, it's very annoying.

But see if you started playing basketball you wouldn't have that problem.

 

[Strike]

Apparently I have an angry face.

This, plus I'm tall and Black so they assume I use ebonics and I'm easily agitated.

 

[ZeroRay]

Hate that horse shit. Without fail I get asked that, it's very annoying.

Haha, got that line a lot when I was a kid.

Good thing I topped off at 5'9 :/

 

[Daingurse]

But see if you started playing basketball you wouldn't have that problem.

Haha, true.

 

[ZaCH3000]

Idk it's hard to tell.

People probably think I'm an asshole at a glance because my face is generally stern and serious.

 

[Kurita]

Hate that horse shit. Without fail I get asked that, it's very annoying.

I often get asked that even though I'm white. Something to do with me being 6ft4 :lol
(I'm not bulky though, like at all haha)

 

[Darryl]

i have dreads so i get this all of the time. people think i do drugs and listen to bob marley, couldn't be further from the truth. i enjoy it though. i get a lot more attention from all over the place with it than without even if some of it can be negative (car searches, professors being difficult).

 

[Madrin]

I have a problem similar to the OP where people sometimes treat me as if I'm a shy, doe-eyed little kid. They talk to me with a tone like "Hey, big guy! High five!" I guess that's what happens when you have a baby face.

 

[BannedEpisode]

I had three different girls ask me if I'm gay last night because I was well dressed.

 

[Kaizer]

Lots of people assume I'm some thugged out hoodlum because I'm dark black and are very surprised by my intelligence and politeness, gets annoying.

 

[faceless007]

Hate that horse shit. Without fail I get asked that, it's very annoying.

My high-school biology teacher was tall and he had a great retort to this: "Do you play miniature golf?"

 

[Kurita]

Lots of people assume I'm some thugged out hoodlum because I'm dark black and are very surprised by my intelligence and politeness, gets annoying.

I think they're just racist

 

[.GqueB.]

People often assume I'm conceited because I'm so good looking.

 

[Alucrid]

"the southeast asian economic crisis" *looks at me* "you might know about it"

I'll assume he said that because I'm an economics major

 

[Vermillion]

Uh, one of my friends thought I was a thug when he first saw me.

I'm starting to think that the impression I give varies depending on the race of the observer, though... or rather, how many black people they've been around.

But I'm odd and give off many impressions anyways.

 

[Deathmistress]

Most people assume I'm a idiot, or at least vapid. It's great, people tell me at least once a day that I'm shockingly well spoken. Sometimes, I dumb down my speech patterns because I know people will pay me better that way. I'm a server so people assume the worst. I graduated college magna cum laude is three years. Fuck you.

People also assume I speak Russian and don't understand English because of my name...FML. Sorry, I'm neither foreign nor interesting.

OH--and I don't fake my love for science fiction, fantasy, and hockey for attention. It is possible for women to love all things nerd without looking like a troll.

 

[Jack_AG]

6'3"
208lbs (I like to workout yo)
Black Mohawk
Riddled with tattoos

I was in Chess club in high school... yeah... I'm a nerd. I love computers, games, tech, etc.

Overheard quite a few people say shit under their breath, stare, etc. No big to me. I never judge people without tattoos and I expect the same but sometimes don't get it.

 

[Sapiens]

Yeah - I'm kind of ugly and shit. It sucks but you know who the assholes and cunts are.

 

[Gordon Shumway]

I'm big and black and largely unkempt so I'm either treated like a big meanie or a big teddy bear. Never in between.

Doppelganger..

 

[Chake]

Indian because of my soft hair. Not so much if i get it cut.

 

[Sydle]

Yes, I look 5 years younger than I am. In my profession, I have to deal with corporate executives and each time I meet another one I get a comment about how young I am. I always end up having to recount my experience and skills, while idiots with horrible ideas and terrible business analyst skills who look their age are given passes just for being older.

In some ways, there's a certain satisfaction to surprising people, but it's often just a burden. I'm balding, so I figure in a couple years or so it'll be set right.

 

[Mulligan]

People think i look like a rapist when they've regained consciousness.

 

[donkey show]

They think I should be throwing destructo disks. :S

 

[Dr Stabbingworth]

.

 

[Interferon]

Happens to me all the time.
Don't have a beard and my jaw is pretty "weak", I look quite a bit younger than I really am (which isn't good), has to do something with it
First impression, like in the OP's case, is the innocent schoolboy

 

[pestul]

I'm not really sure what people expect from me before I start talking..

Most generally are very friendly with me shortly after though. Describing looks, people have said that I look like Will Wheaton (recent) but with bigger build, and someone said I look like Jason Day (Golfer) in the past week from The Masters coverage. My beard is now a permanent part of my appearance. I don't think I could ever go back..

Dunno. I guess I'm happy with that. I don't think I'm prejudged positively or negatively for the most part tbh.

 

[eddfromtheriver]

They always tell me (once they get to know me), that i look "unapproachable aggressive and douchey", and end up getting (pleasantly) surprised by the way i actually am.

 

[legacyzero]

I get told a lot that I look "sinister".

In all actually, I'm a very nice dude.

 

[Mumei]

In middle school, I got "You look sad"; now I get "You look angry / irritated." I am irritated, but only because they said I looked irritated. Other than that, I don't really know. I was once mistaken for a fourteen year old, though, when I was 22 (26 now).

This is real shit right here. On a daily basis I feel judged. Maybe the way I feel says more about me than the people around me...

/rant

You should read Abigail Saguy's What's Wrong With Fat?. It's a great book.