Don’t Judge a Book by its Cover

We live in a society that is very superficial. It can be very easy to fall into the trap of looking only at the surface of people, things, and ideas without taking the time and effort to delve deeper into them. As the saying goes “Don’t judge a book by its cover”, literally you cannot tell the quality of the contents of a book just by looking at the material used to hold it together. A book with a plain cover and simple title maybe more important, entertaining, or more useful that a book bound in a flashier manner.

This metaphor can be extended to many situations within society. One of the best examples of this is the relationship between people. If you see a beautiful man or woman, you would immediately pursue them before and average looking person? In many cases, a person looking for a significant other would. Unfortunately, the more average person may have a better sense of humour and a more interesting outlook on life. The prejudice of deciding what to do based solely on outward appearance could cost the pursuer the chance of a meaningful relationship.

It is difficult to change being so superficial. Our sense of vision is very strong and it is easy to fall in the trap of believing the most beautiful, shiny, or flashiest object in inherently “better”. Only by maintaining strict self-discipline can we force ourselves to put these prejudices aside and look deeper into everything we do. Who knows? The more beautiful woman or man may turn out to be a better match for you. But you will never know if you always base your decision on what looks the best. Only by looking at the less obvious features can we know what is truly the most outstanding person, object or idea. And then we will know it with confidence.

Amanda Ogden is from Sydney Australia, and has spent the past 13 years working within the welfare industry in both administration and case management assisting people with mental health issues, mild intellectual disabilities, acquired brain injuries, drug & alcohol, homelessness gain employment. She also loves travelling, creating jewellery, music, friends and family.

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