Appearances are Deceptive…


What does the word ‘Appearance‘ mean?

The word Appearance is not that easy to comprehend than it seems. The meaning of ‘Appearance’ according to of the most of us is sheer ‘Physical appearance.’ However, if we see only the physical aspect of this word, it’s meaning becomes quite elusive and deceptive. It is a lot more extensive than mere physical appearance. 

So my dear friend, get ready to meet the other side of your Appearance…

Apart from physical appearance, there is another face of the word Appearance, which makes its connotation complete. And that aspect is the ‘Mental Appearance.’

The mental appearance… sounds strange surely. But let your curiosity levels increase because this is going to be interesting. We shall gradually sort out the mysteries of our Mental Appearance.

To continue, we can say that the word ‘Appearance’ has two aspects. One is physical appearance, and the other is the mental appearance. Both the elements combined make the meaning of the word ‘Appearance’ complete.

Now, let us try to understand the meaning of both the aspects intensely…

Physical appearance

We all are aware of the physical appearance aspect. It constitutes our apparent looks…eyes, ears, nose, skin…the attributes which are physically seen and felt. It is the visible face, the tangible face of our appearance. This is the definition of appearance which most of us have in our minds. But not only that, Physical Appearance also constitutes your presentation to the outside world, how you project yourself to others. 

And now, the time has come to unveil the other side of our Appearance…The Mental Appearance.

Mental appearance

First of all, when we are calling it the mental appearance, it means it involves our mind. And it is the reason why it’s complicated.

We all are aware of the fact that it is tough to perceive what exactly is going inside a person’s mind. Our actions are not always the stimuli of what is going inside our unfathomable thoughts. Our mental appearance is a mirror to the things revolving inside a person’s mind.  Since others cannot see the mental aspect, it is the intangible face of our appearance.

Little clear little unclear but I hope you are getting closer to say hello to your mental appearance…Let us move further without wasting any time.

How are both the aspects of our Appearance connected?

The ideal condition states that both physical and the mental appearance must be faithful to each other. What I mean is what you showcase to the outside world(Physical appearance) must be exactly the same going inside your mind(Mental appearance). It is the transparency between the two which authenticates our identity and makes us true individuals.


But is it happening?

No, it’s not. In this pretentious world, most of us are not able to maintain a healthy relationship between the two aspects. Both the aspects of our appearance do not complement each other. Always remember, only our physical appearance is not a true depiction of what we are. 

Why is it important to have a transparency between both the aspects of our Appearance?

Let us try to understand it with a simple process…

Our mind is a kingdom of thoughts, the infinite thoughts which we come across daily. Others cannot see our thoughts, they can only feel it. And how do they feel it? It is the way we showcase it via physical appearance in the form of actions.

Though it is almost impossible to turn every thought into action, at least clarity should be there in our thinking. It is the ‘clarity’ of our mind, which enables us to convert our thoughts into actions. At least, whatever we showcase physically must be a response to what we mentally feel. There should be a mirror between the two.

It is only then…

  1. we will always be originals.
  2. we can own a distinct identity. 
  3. we can distinguish ourselves from others. 


A few in-depth observations:

Interestingly, we need the help of our physical appearance to reveal our mental appearance. It means our physical appearance is the depict of our complete appearance. The way we appear in front of others, others will see and perceive us. It is the reason there should not be any discrepancy between both the aspects of our appearance.

Having said that, is it possible in today’s world? Can we implement it in both our personal and professional atmospheres? Isn’t it the ideal condition we are talking? Let’s try to find out.

Our appearance in the professional atmosphere :

In the professional atmosphere, it is virtually impossible to maintain a balance between both the aspects of our appearance. Obviously, we cannot say to our bosses at our workplace on their faces that we do not like them. Needless to say, we will be thrown out the workplace right away.

Yes, we have to be smart and shrewd at our workplaces to progress and succeed. So, what we can conclude is that in the professional sphere, our physical and mental appearances cannot always be truthful to each other. I know it’s wrong, but there is very less we can change it unless you are the boss.

Our appearance in the personal atmosphere:

I assume that on an average, the professional atmosphere only occupies one-third of our day. The remaining part of our day mostly constitutes our personal atmosphere. And the area of concern is this part of the day.

Always remember, work change, workplaces change but what will remain constant is how we appear in that two-thirds of our day. It is because our personal atmosphere always remains the same.  It is this part of our day, which defines us as an individual. At least, our physical and mental appearance must be loyal to each other during this part our day.

A few In-depth Realizations: 

It is not easy in the personal atmosphere either to maintain a balance between both the aspects of our appearance. Sometimes even in the personal sphere, our physical appearance agree to people, even if our mental presence is disagreeing. At times, our physical appearance stays silent, even when our mental appearance is screaming. There are also times when our physical appearance smiles even if our mental presence is crying.

Yet, this balance is imperative in the personal sphere. After all, it is our appearance in the personal environment, which is our originality and identity. And the best medium that allows our physical and the mental appearance to be loyal to each other is Expressing. Just express whatever you feel inside. Maybe it is the negativity you are expressing, but flush it out, not for others, but for oneself.



If both our appearances are not complementing each other, not only do we deceive others. Knowingly or unknowingly, we also deceive ourselves. Yes, continuously playing the truth-lie game even disguises our identity from us. We stop knowing our inner-self anymore. 

Are we aware of the consequences which we have to face when we allow our physical appearance to lie to our mental appearance? Do we notice the after-effects of the betrayal of our physical appearance with our mental appearance?

Well, sometimes we do, and sometimes we don’t. In any case, the important thing is how many of us realize it and how many of us try to change it? I hope you have started the realization process by now.

Time for some Happy Realizations…

There is no denying the fact that it requires courage to maintain the transparency we are talking about. Nonetheless, we also need to know that we need courage initially only. Gradually, we become habituated to it and we start enjoying it.

It boosts our inner self-attributes and eventually, we stop feeling negative because of the transparency. This way, we fall in love with none other than oneself.

Moreover, it is when we reveal our true appearance to others, others show their real appearance to us. We all want to see the real appearance of others, right? But for that, let us take the initiative of revealing our true appearance to them. We should not wait for others to start. 

We get an added advantage when we initiate. It is the initiation, which enforces our aura on others. Your presence is felt by others when you depict your true appearance to them.

And yes, be it any emotion, positive or negative, we should express ourselves. We should never worry about losing people. It may take time for them to handle our true appearance, but trust me, the ones who love us will stay. We should not feel sorry for the people who leave as it is always good for everyone in the long run.

Final words…

It is only we, who have to decide that whether we want to become negatives of a photograph, which are many… or we want to become an original, which can only be one.