# Things you wouldn't know about yourself if other people hadn't told you **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 30, 2008, 7:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-wouldnt-know-about-yourself-if-other-people-hadnt-told-you/479190 "2008-12-30T07:37:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![overlyverbose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/9dc877/32.png) [@overlyverbose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/overlyverbose)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2008, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-wouldnt-know-about-yourself-if-other-people-hadnt-told-you/479190/41 "2008-12-30T16:13:55Z")
I was once told by someone at work that he’d hire me for my walk alone. Then again, he was fired for sexual harassment shortly after I left, so I take that compliment with a grain of salt. I’ve also been told that I remind people of Karen from Will & Grace. I don’t know if it’s because I’m bitchy or what, but I considered that a compliment. My husband has also told me that he’s impressed how I can tell what’s wrong with our son when he’s sick. Given that I have no idea what I’m doing most of the time, I appreciate him saying that, but I have my doubts. ---
**Author:** ![Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swallowed_My_Cellphone)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2008, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-wouldnt-know-about-yourself-if-other-people-hadnt-told-you/479190/42 "2008-12-30T16:31:49Z")
> [@overlyverbose](#): > > 've also been told that I remind people of Karen from Will & Grace. You’re an alcoholic? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Rodgers01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b19c9b/32.png) [@Rodgers01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rodgers01)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2008, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-wouldnt-know-about-yourself-if-other-people-hadnt-told-you/479190/43 "2008-12-30T16:37:24Z")
> [@Fuzzy\_Dunlop](#): > > I’ve been told by many people that I have a very distinctive walk. The best explanation I’ve gotten is that I “float” instead of walking, as if my head is completely stationary. But I’ve never noticed other people bobbing excessively when they walk, so I don’t quite understand how it’s unusual. Other people say I swagger everywhere I go, but I still haven’t figured out quite what that means. > > Someone once told me that I naturally hold my head very high almost, but not quite, to the point of being haughty or stuck up. This makes me glad because when I see people walking around staring at the ground I want to grab their chin and yank it up. > > Another friend told me that my natural sitting position resembles a gorilla. I thought that sounded insulting but apparently she meant I reminded her of the strong confident yet comfortable pose a gorilla tends to sit in. So I guess that’s a compliment. > > I’ve also been told I exude silence, which just sounds cool whatever the hell it means. Now I really want to see a video of you walking and sitting…! Another one: years ago, I overheard my mom talking to my uncle on the phone when she didn’t know I was around. “Well you know Rodgers,” she said, “he’s such a loner…” I was stunned! Never once had I thought of myself as a loner before that, but after hearing it the evidence seemed to pile up: I had friends, but not many close friends; I never brought people over to the house; I spent a good amount of time outside of school alone… So, I guess I was a loner. I’ve been a bit worried ever since that it’s become a self-fulfilling prophecy. ---
**Author:** ![badbadrubberpiggy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/57b2e6/32.png) [@badbadrubberpiggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/badbadrubberpiggy)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2008, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-wouldnt-know-about-yourself-if-other-people-hadnt-told-you/479190/44 "2008-12-30T16:39:21Z")
> [@delphica](#): > > It turns out that I am short. I always thought I was average. _Children_ are short, you know? A lot of people described me as short, but I figured they weren’t paying close attention. Then one day I was talking to my mother, and she said I was short. My mother! The betrayal! But that was when I learned I was short. Same here. I don’t think of myself as short, usually. Maybe it’s b/c my husband & most of my family are also short, so I’m used to being “average height” relative to the people I’m with. Then I went to a sports bar with some friends one night, and I think I came up to the shoulder of most people there. If that. Also, one of my friends once observed that I only eat half a sandwich, when I get them at restaurants - the other half, I open up & eat the fillings with a fork, and leave the bread. I never noticed I did this until she pointed it out. ---
**Author:** ![overlyverbose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/9dc877/32.png) [@overlyverbose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/overlyverbose)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2008, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-wouldnt-know-about-yourself-if-other-people-hadnt-told-you/479190/45 "2008-12-30T16:43:24Z")
> [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](#): > > You’re an alcoholic? > > 😉 Not yet. However, given my visit with my mom this Christmas, I might well be driven to drink. Speaking of mothers, mine pointed out to me that I tend to eat any food on my plate in order: vegetables first, then meat, then starch. I didn’t even notice, but when she pointed it out, I realized I was eating the stuff I thought I was supposed to eat first to fill up on it, then working my way around from less bad to bad (my mom uses cream in every single potato or pasta dish she’s ever made and slathers rolls in butter before they hit the plate, so I try to eat as little of them as possible). ---
**Author:** ![Asimovian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asimovian/32/172_2.png) [@Asimovian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asimovian)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2008, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-wouldnt-know-about-yourself-if-other-people-hadnt-told-you/479190/46 "2008-12-30T16:48:49Z")
That I’m a very good listener and decent at dispensing advice. _shrug_ ---
**Author:** ![E.Thorp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/898d66/32.png) [@E.Thorp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E.Thorp)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2008, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-wouldnt-know-about-yourself-if-other-people-hadnt-told-you/479190/47 "2008-12-30T17:39:59Z")
At work (and at home), I’m “computer-savvy.” Obviously there’s not enough technical expertise around here. ---
**Author:** ![Creaky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e68b1a/32.png) [@Creaky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Creaky)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2008, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-wouldnt-know-about-yourself-if-other-people-hadnt-told-you/479190/48 "2008-12-30T17:59:16Z")
I didn’t know that I was a bad, weird dresser, but everybody I know thinks I am. In fact they think that so much that they’ve all threatened to nominate me for that cable TV show, “What Not to Wear”. Man, I seriously never knew. I just found this out, so I need to process this information before I form my own opinion. I honestly thought I looked okay if not downright cool, but maybe not. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Agent\_Foxtrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc29f/32.png) [@Agent\_Foxtrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Agent_Foxtrot)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2008, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-wouldnt-know-about-yourself-if-other-people-hadnt-told-you/479190/49 "2008-12-30T18:12:12Z")
When I was 19, my parents had just separated and started a nasty divorce. Apparently, I didn’t speak to my mother for 6 months. I only found this out when I was 25 or so. I have no idea why I refused to talk to her. She and I have always been close. ---
**Author:** ![Astroboy14](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/df705f/32.png) [@Astroboy14](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Astroboy14)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2008, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-wouldnt-know-about-yourself-if-other-people-hadnt-told-you/479190/50 "2008-12-30T18:15:09Z")
I’m ugly, and apparently my momma dresses me funny… ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2008, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-wouldnt-know-about-yourself-if-other-people-hadnt-told-you/479190/51 "2008-12-30T18:18:22Z")
> [@Creaky](#): > > I didn’t know that I was a bad, weird dresser, but everybody I know thinks I am. > > In fact they think that so much that they’ve all threatened to nominate me for that cable TV show, “What Not to Wear”. > > Man, I seriously never knew. I just found this out, so I need to process this information before I form my own opinion. I honestly thought I looked okay if not downright cool, but maybe not. :eek: Ask the Dope for help, if you like. I think the clothing advice (well, most of it) on here has been fairly solid. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2008, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-wouldnt-know-about-yourself-if-other-people-hadnt-told-you/479190/52 "2008-12-30T18:20:47Z")
When I end a phone conversation, instead of saying “Bye” I say something like “umm Bye.” Never noticed until somebody pointed it out. ---
**Author:** ![phouka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c5a1d2/32.png) [@phouka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phouka)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2008, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-wouldnt-know-about-yourself-if-other-people-hadnt-told-you/479190/53 "2008-12-30T18:30:53Z")
I have unique hair. Someone I knew at high school spotted me at church, at least fifteen years after we graduated. She recognized me by the back of my head. “Hey, that lady has hair just like **phouka**. Hey, it IS **phouka**.” It’s not like I had the same hair style, plus, my hair is a lot darker than it used to be. There must be some other intangible factor involved. Very strange. ---
**Author:** ![Properties\_of\_Iron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7cd45c/32.png) [@Properties\_of\_Iron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Properties_of_Iron)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2008, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-wouldnt-know-about-yourself-if-other-people-hadnt-told-you/479190/54 "2008-12-30T18:37:46Z")
I have been told by some of my closest friends that I am incredibly vague. I have also been told that I don’t really seem to fit with the surrounding flow of my location, no matter where it is. I had honestly never noticed this. ---
**Author:** ![Harvey\_The\_Heavy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Harvey\_The\_Heavy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harvey_The_Heavy)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2008, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-wouldnt-know-about-yourself-if-other-people-hadnt-told-you/479190/55 "2008-12-30T18:41:06Z")
> [@Karyn](#): > > I’ve been called ‘diplomatic’ by lots of people when I did some very public work but I don’t see myself that way. **I see myself as biting my tongue a lot so that I don’t say most of the rude things that I’m thinking.** That’s the very definition of diplomacy. Me, I apparently speak with a Chicago accent, even though I only lived there until I was 13, and I’ve been in California for 26 years. I have no idea what my “accent” sounds like, but people continue to pick up on it immediately. ---
**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2008, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-wouldnt-know-about-yourself-if-other-people-hadnt-told-you/479190/56 "2008-12-30T18:43:58Z")
> [@SomeUserName](#): > > That the man listed on my original birth certificate is not my father. My mother remarried when I was 4 and he adopted me. They put his name on my birth certificate, so that’s true for me as well. It wasn’t until years later that I found out that the man listed on my original birth certificate ALSO wasn’t actually my father. Anyway, it took other people saying something, coming onto me etc for me to realize that I’m actually decent looking. I never thought so growing up and even at 33 I still have trouble believing it at times. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2008, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-wouldnt-know-about-yourself-if-other-people-hadnt-told-you/479190/57 "2008-12-30T19:34:20Z")
> [@control-z](#): > > When I end a phone conversation, instead of saying “Bye” I say something like “umm Bye.” Never noticed until somebody pointed it out. A friend in high school pointed out that he could always tell when I was about to get off the phone because I’d say “well” as in “Well, I guess I need to get going” or “Well, it’s time for me to get started on this homework.” ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2008, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-wouldnt-know-about-yourself-if-other-people-hadnt-told-you/479190/58 "2008-12-30T19:40:31Z")
> [@Zebra](#): > > More than one person on this board has commented on how attractive I am. > > I dont’ think I’m ugly. I would say average. However the modifier ‘hella’ has been tossed about and I just don’t get that. **zebra,** if I could just be honest for a moment. I’ve met you. You are hot as hell. That is all. ---
**Author:** ![Asimovian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asimovian/32/172_2.png) [@Asimovian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asimovian)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2008, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-wouldnt-know-about-yourself-if-other-people-hadnt-told-you/479190/59 "2008-12-30T20:25:36Z")
> [@Antinor01](#): > > Anyway, it took other people saying something, coming onto me etc for me to realize that I’m actually decent looking. I never thought so growing up and even at 33 I still have trouble believing it at times. Oh, it’s twue. It’s twue, it’s twue!!! ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2008, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-wouldnt-know-about-yourself-if-other-people-hadnt-told-you/479190/60 "2008-12-30T20:54:49Z")
> [@Creaky](#): > > I didn’t know that I was a bad, weird dresser, but everybody I know thinks I am. > > In fact they think that so much that they’ve all threatened to nominate me for that cable TV show, “What Not to Wear”. > > Man, I seriously never knew. I just found this out, so I need to process this information before I form my own opinion. I honestly thought I looked okay if not downright cool, but maybe not. :eek: I can only judge from the pictures you’ve shared with us, but I have always found you attractive. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-wouldnt-know-about-yourself-if-other-people-hadnt-told-you/479190.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-wouldnt-know-about-yourself-if-other-people-hadnt-told-you/479190.md?page=4)