Have you ever met someone new and instantly knew you weren't going to get along before the conversation was even over?
Reddit user u/DDelirium46 recently asked, "Have you ever listened to a person talk for less than a minute and known you weren't going to get along with that person? What did they say?" Here are a few stories from some people who couldn't get away fast enough:
1."Years ago, I and my ex-husband went to see a movie with an older colleague of his. Before the movie, we had dinner at, like, a chain restaurant/steakhouse-type place; staff on the floor was all 20ish. I never met this man before, but in the first few minutes of sitting down and looking at the menu, he very confidently told us how he came there a lot and flirted with the female staff because 'they love the attention.' The best part? His daughter worked there. All I could think was how I would literally cringe myself through the floor if I was 20 and my 50-year-old dad came into my place of work and perved on my co-workers because he didn't understand that they only put up with him because they are paid to do so."
2."They told me, 'Yeah, all women are bitches, you included. No offense,' within the first two minutes of knowing me."
3."I was in a job interview once, and the manager cut me off mid-sentence to jump to a weird conclusion. He went, 'What do you think the performance of this algorithm would be?' I said, 'Oh, it'll be 'n' times—' He cut me off and went, 'Oh, you think it's going to be 'n'? You think it'll be 'n'??!! That's ridiculous, there's no way it would just be 'n'!' I said, 'Uhhhh, you gotta let me finish speaking.' He then cut me off mid-sentence twice more during our conversation. We...didn't get along. The dude was a total tool."
5."They talk negatively about someone else in a very judgy way. There was this mom in my daughter's school who seemed to 'know' everyone; she talked to me, and she spoke so badly about these people. Then moments later, I saw her interacting in a 'friendly' way with those she was judging. My eyes rolled so much I could see my brain telling me not to get involved with her. I was right because by the time the school year ended, her 'friends' hated her, and they were talking behind her back, too."
6."'I know I'm not supposed to ask, but I need to know. It's not for work or anything — What religion are you?' Said by my HR manager."
7."Had just started a job, and within a minute of meeting one of my new colleagues, he waxes lyrical about how 'weak' it is that one of our other colleagues uses an inhaler, oblivious to the fact I myself use an inhaler (though my asthma is mild and well-managed)."
8."I was listening to the NXIVM podcast and heard a clip of the founder saying he has a 225 IQ. If I walked into a room and heard someone say that, I’d walk right back out."
10."It was Meet Your Teacher day before my kiddo started kindergarten, and this other parent literally bragged that her kid was completely illiterate, couldn't stand being read to, and that she hated reading, too."
11."I started my PhD a few months ago, and one of the common starter conversations with postgraduates you just meet is: 'What is your thesis about?' Well, I got asked the question first, and after describing my dissertation theme, the other guy went, 'Oh, I see, well mine is actually important…' with a very condescending tone. Well, pal, fuck you, too, I guess."
12."I was talking to a girl in college, and she made some remark about, 'Yeah, like when you test your boyfriend to make sure he loves you.' I remember thinking, 'You seemed so normal...'"
13."I went to the penthouse party of a guy my friend used to hook up with. This dude gave me Patrick Bateman vibes, from his house decor to the way he talked. Total creep. The only time he spoke directly to me in the entire party he was making fun of homeless people. I did not like him."
14."'We need to start doing...' It was the assistant at my work at the time, who transferred to work with me. Literally, the first minute, he was telling me how to fix my site. The one he knew next to nothing about."
15."When a mutual friend introduces you and you go to greet them, and they deny it and proudly exclaim, 'I'm a hugger,' and then go in for an unwanted hug."
16."I remember seeing someone for around 20 seconds (they didn't seem aware of my presence), and they were already making fun of me because I simply walked by. They made fun of other people, too, but the fact that they just met someone and immediately targeted them for harassment is a red flag bigger than most poles can handle."
17."The first time I met a coworker, he was telling our other coworker how one of his twins had woken up crying the previous night, and his wife was 'too fucking stupid to take her out of the room so the other woke up, and I had to help.' I've since thought that was the single worst first impression anyone has ever made."
