Question

Is there an image that made a big difference in your life or influenced you in some important way? Find an example of this and discuss the important aspects of the image that had an impact on you why you think the image was powerful enough to have this effect on you.

Answer 1

There are multiple images in a person's life that truly have an effect on a person's thinking. The image could be a photograph, it could be a mental image or an old memory that now looks like a single episodic memory. An image of a crowd that I created in my mind during my high school years created a huge impact on my personality.

I had contested for the position of school vice captain during my high school years and there were around 10 participants for that position. We had to compete each other on various basis. So I reached the top two along with another student who happened to be my friend. There was an open voting system in the last round. The entire school consisting of children from fifth grade to tenth grade had the choice of choosing their leaders. They would simply raise their hand in support of the person who they want to see as their captain. When it came to voting, the number of hands that were raised in response to my name were many. But in response to my friend's name, the entire crowd raised their hand, so much so that it was difficult to count. That image of crowd raising their hands in support for my friend stuck in my mind as a image.

This image had great impact on my personality. Not only did I, as child, realize the importance of socializing with others, but more importantly I realized that ability to communicate to communicate with people around you in their native language makes a huge difference in your bonding with them than usual.

It was obvious that individual's loved my friend as a leader and wanted her to represent them to the higher authorities in a school. She not only spoke their native language, but also she was the most vibrant personality one could come across. She was extremely well read and was fluent in how she spoke. She was intelligent and empathetic.

After realizing the importance of having a strong personality, being able to make right decisions, being well read and informed about current affairs and so on, I joined a personality development class. I joined it to learn a new language and master it. I learnt about non-verbal behaviour and how it can affect a person's interaction with others. I learnt about persuading others just as I learnt to be a good listener and following others. I began to read how Mahatma Gandhi, Nelson Mandela, used to be followers before they truly began leading people. I learnt that one has to take initiative to interact with others, share common characteristics to create bonds with others.