As a college freshman, I have come across others who have this incredible urge to impress other people. Whether it's a new environment or a job interview, we all have experienced the need to impress another individual. But why exactly do we feel the need to impress others on the regular? I have come up with a few explanations that I think are valid to answer this question.
Childhood
I don't know about anyone else, but I feel like ever since I was little I've had the need to always impress others and please them. I found this feeling especially through school. I always had to go above and beyond, I always had to put myself out there, etc. It was just instilled in me at a very young age. So, that is what I believe to be the foundation between my constant need to impress others.
Calculating Our Self Worth
For most of my life, I calculated my own self-worth based upon what others thought about me. I valued myself based on what others thought about me. I think what others think about us to a certain degree says a lot about ourselves, but at the same time, it isn't our entire worth. This is extremely common amongst young people especially, so just a reminder for all of us out there: your self-worth isn't how others see you.
The Challenge
Obviously, not everyone is going to love you. It's pretty impossible. However, I think it's natural for us to take up a challenge and make it our subconscious mission to win it. So, we might feel the need to impress people just because we know we may already know we won't be able to. Sometimes, the challenge isn't worth it.
Reassurance
This goes hand-in-hand with self-worth. We occasionally need reassurance that we are awesome, and that's okay! Once we impress others, we gain confidence points. It's a great way to grow confidence, I'm sure. But at the same time, don't rely on other people's opinions. Because regardless, you are awesome.
Get out there and blow them all away, because no matter who you impress or who you don't, you're amazing regardless.
