What are some things that people do, that would make you think they might be “a little off”

3 comments

1. Gut instinct. More literally, once you gain enough experience in a certain type of situation, if you find yourself in a similar situation, your gut/instinct/subconscious will predict the outcome.

   For example, if I have been in several relationships with people who cheat, I might start picking up a pattern. Maybe I meet someone and something they say or do is something I’ve heard a lot from other people who cheat. My subconscious picks up on this, which activates a physiological association and I start getting a twisting feeling in the pit of my stomach. The same feeling I got after I was cheated on. Consciously I might not be able to pick up on the thing they said or did, but I can pick up on the feeling in my stomach.

   More practically this is usually very specific patterns that are activating existing neural pathways created by our experiences, and the whole thing together is very nuanced. So it gets chalked up to “something feels off”.

2. I had an algebra teacher who would dote on all of the girls and watch over their shoulders as they did their work. He never did this to any of the guys in his class, it was only ever the girls. In fact, he would hardly spare the guys a glance.

   I don’t usually think much about teachers being attentive towards students, but when it’s so obviously selective like that, it makes me wonder why, and most of the potential options are not so cute and innocent.

3. Actions on purpose.