It was interesting to see Simon Cowell, fellow judges Amanda Holden and Piers Morgan, and the entire guest audience on “Britain’s Got Talent” snicker when Susan walked on stage. They were doing what we all do subconsciously: judging Susan’s singing ability based on the way she looked.
Making value judgments after 3 to 10 seconds of meeting someone is not fair, but it’s human nature. It goes back to the flight or fight syndrome. We are programmed to react to people almost instantaneously to find out whether we like them or not, whether they are friend or foe, and whether we want to talk to them or not.
However, there is another expression that exemplifies Susan Boyle: “Never judge a book by its cover.” Although this seems fairer and more open-minded, it’s not what we usually do as human beings. No matter how many times we tell ourselves we will not judge others, we cannot help it—it’s part of our make-up. We seldom give people a second chance and when we do, it takes a lot of work from the other person to convince us otherwise. Let’s remember Susan Boyle when we start judging people and not be so quick in our judgments. You never know when you’ll be surprised—right, Simon?