Would You Rather Be Liked Or Respected?
Likability is easy in the modern world. Respect is elusive
A few weeks ago, a former high school friend posted on Facebook that he no longer considered himself a traditional Republican. Going forward, he was full throttle on right-wing conspiracies. My guess is, he always felt this way but now felt comfortable in “coming out” because it was now mainstream to do so.
The comments were about what you’d expect. The first bunch was from friends and acquaintances who intimated that he’d gone off the deep end. But then another person commented, “You’ve just won yourself a million new friends.”
Is that all it takes to make a new friend these days? Just say you hate this or that, and a million people will like you? Sadly, in the modern world, what you profess on social media makes you likable more than how you conduct yourself in real life.
Likability has always been easy to achieve. If you’re funny or outgoing, you’re likable. And if you lack both those qualities, shower people with kindness and favors, and you’ll achieve the same result.
But unlike likability, winning the respect of others takes effort. We may like a person, even though we’d never entrust them with a secret, hold them to their word, or allow them to advise us on sensitive…
