You've heard these two quotes before:

"It's always about first impressions."

"Don't judge a book by its cover."

But the two together and you get "Don't judge a book by its cover even though it matters." There are times where I hate both of these statements.

First impressions matter, but I hate when a first impression isn't representative of the impression you are trying to leave.

You can't judge a book by its cover and yet there are times where the cover is representative of the content.

Recently, I had an encounter where within 10 seconds a first impression was made and all I wished was that the book wasn't judged by its cover.

No matter how you cut it, there is no doubt that what people see within their first moments with us will be the impression they are left with. No matter what the content is on the inside. No matter what we haven't had a chance to say yet. That first impression will leave a lot. Every impression, especially a first impression, matters.

If someone only had 10 seconds with you, what would their takeaway be?