From introverted and gentle to extroverted and eccentric, the human personality is a complex and colorful thing. It describes our distinctive patterns of thinking, feeling, and behaving and derives from a mix of innate dispositions and inclinations along with environmental factors and experiences.
But sometimes, people give the impression that they have a very narrow definition of self. Interested in such cases, Reddit user StandardGenre45 made a post on the platform, asking everyone "What's something that people turn into their whole personality?" And it blew up—so far, the post has 28.3K comments. Here are some of the most interesting ones.
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Being gay.
I'm myself gay but that's hardly something I communicate about unless being specifically asked about. Yet I've met a few who center their whole life and personality around that. They have to do ,"gay thing". All their behavior, taste and enjoyment and justified by "it's a gay thing".
Funny thing I've already been told something along the lines of "yeah it's pretty common among us gay people, you wouldn't know about it".
I don't understand, like if I were asked to describe myself it'd go along those lines
- french that grew up in Quebec Canada.
- love sciences and physics, studied that.
- into video games and phantasy
- big on family values n stuff
- I like languages, learned Japanese and German (although German is quite rusty now)
- my favorite food are sushi pizza and french sausage.
- I love beer 🍺 !
Then down down down the line
- I'm gay
But I dunno, I don't see people going around saying they're straight, I don't see why that should be something I say.
I just baffles me and I find it really sad... Are you so void of personality that "gay" is your number one trait ? The one thing describe you Is the type of hole you like to put your d@ck in?
Done with my rant xD
Mental Health issues that they don't actually have. Being "uncomfortable" because some papers aren't straight isn't OCD Stacy. And having high energy doesn't make you Manic. Stop turning people's disabilities into something "quirky".
Person with Psychology degree here (and Sociology, too) This REALLY irritates me. Especially since 99% of the time, they haven't the slightest idea what the actual symptoms of the syndrome or disorder with which they claim to be be afflicted are...
Being American. Put that flag away. No one gives a s**t.
Flag, fine. Overly fake patriotic and "go back to your own country" kind of people can get f****d.
Their Faith or lack of faith. I've seen Christians become hyper religious and force their beliefs on everyone around them and alternatively I've seen Atheists become toxic and anyone who deters from their worldview even slightly is a complete moron.
Let YOUR beliefs be just that YOURS and not everyone else's.
Yes ! And stop knocking on my door on weekends and pushing your religion in my face.
Being bloody vegan.
It is fine if your sharing food and you tell them you can't eat it because your vegan. Right?
Being LGBTQ, especially the whole gender thing. Like, I consider myself non-binary but I also consider this aspect of mine fairly unimportant to be honest. It's a "nice to know" type of thing for myself but I don't ever feel the need to discuss it with other people. Because what are they going to say about it? "Cool...?" Being non-cis or non-het is not nearly as interesting as some LGBTQ people believe it is. It's just ONE random aspect of someone's personality. There are many other aspects. For example I'm probably a HSP (highly sensitive person). But again, I don't see a point in mentioning this to other people because people who already know aren't going to treat me differently because of a label. They are know how I am/act/talk etc. And people who don't know me (yet) either don't matter or they'll find out about me over time.
So is HSP a thing that it has an abbreviation? Not sure what it is but I feel old now.
I’m Bisexual. No one in my life that hasn’t *asked* knows I’m bisexual, because it’s not my f*****g personality. Most friends I have in the LGBTQ+ community are first and foremost, queer. They’re not introduced to me as doctors, teachers, Germans, Americans, activists, introverts…no, they’re introduced as Queer and often that will be the only thing I know about them for some time.
This is a present issue in the community.
Conspiracy theorist. "Open your eyes, do your own research"
The generation they're born in
I don't know what I am. I'm vaguely curious, but not enough to Google it.
The Greatest Generation (born 1901–1927) The Silent Generation (born 1928–1945) Baby Boomers (born 1946–1964) Generation X (born 1965–1980) Millennials (born 1981–1995) Generation Z (born 1996–2010) Generation Alpha (born 2011–2025)
Load More Replies...Isn't this just an American trend though? In the UK people don't say what generation 'name' they belong to. I didn't even know I belonged to one until I looked this up 😊
It's something that has become very prominent in the media here in America in the past decade or so that exists solely as a means to further divide people and give them something else to argue about.
Load More Replies...I don't think anyone embraces their 'generation', it's just something everybody else wants to lump you into without knowing anything about you.
I'm a "boomer", but I don't really care what "generation" a person is. Now, get off my lawn. 🙂
This is why those who live up to their generational demographic, and born between Gen X and Gen Y, demanded to be deemed something in between like Xennial. I'm in that group based on my birthday. I can attest that I don't lean toward just Millennial and even less as Gen X. But I have been assumed as a Boomer online due to my old-fashioned views because I was raised by a Boomer. I also was around and took notes on how to act by my Black and White era grandparents. My kid is a Gen Z and I find things I relate to her as well. So, I'm a mixed bag, as I believe a lot of people are, in that sense.
I'm Gen Z (I had to look it up) and honestly my Generational stereotype isn't most of the people my age.
Load More Replies...It began with the "Boomers", to describe those born in the baby boom that occurred after WWII. Since then, marketing felt they had to create these other artificial constructs, and begin to categorize them, like signs of the zodiac or something. Just silly.
I hate the 'we were happy but dien't knew it' thing some people post. No, every generation has their pros and cons. Do ithink this generation are stuck to their phones? Yes. Do i miss being unable to get to my parents during annemergency cause we didn't have cellphones? Definetivly NOT.
I don't really care about the generation thing, to be honest. I was born a Gen A and my 3 best friends are Gen Zs. None of us gives two damns.
My parents are part of a forgotten generation. A bit ago, my generation was no longer talked about in the media. We get along great. It's nice that media bobbleheads aren't pitting us against anyone else for their ratings/personal profit.
This seems to be a recent phenomenon. I can't recall anyone saying "I'm Gen X!" while I was growing up--certainly I never did--nor do I recall my father ever saying something like, "Well, you know, that's just how you do things when you're part of the Silent Generation."
I've never ever come across this in day to day living. If it wasn't for c**p stirring social and main stream media I wouldn't even know such a thing existed.
I just tell people that before Eve came along, Adam and I had a thing going.
This whole generation war is annoying and stupid. All the generations need to get along. Although, I will say that I am so proud of how proactive and how hard Gen Z is working to make this world a better place.
It all seems to be about economic opportunity. Certain generations had better access to certain commodities but not everyone within those broad definitions necessarily benefitted from this. As a Gen X in their 50s, I certainly benefited in terms of buying a house when prices still bore a relationship to average wages. However, this was no grand plan, just accidentally making a choice to buy as it was cheaper than renting at the time. How this panned out in terms of prices was something no one could have foreseen and we were lucky how it worked out. I really feel for those in their 20s today as (again, through accident of birth) have been born into awful financial circumstances. All those spouting nonsense about being self-made successes (& why don’t today’s generation learn from their example) conveniently ignore when they were born as being a factor in that supposed success. Utter nonsense and illustratrative as to how the state of financial markets determine outcomes. It’s a lottery
This one irks me, especially when it’s said with pride. You had nothing to do with when you were born, none of us did, stop behaving as though it’s an accomplishment or something to be proud of. You don’t get credit or blame for that, and you don’t get to use your age as a means of finding yourself inherently superior of others.
I get them confused, and I admit that I use them in gross generalizations. I still think Boomers screwed everything up for subsequent generations. Time will tell, but how much time is left...
Hair color. If I hear my co-worker talk about how ‘natural red heads’ are or how you shouldn’t mess with them use it as an excuse for a shitty character trait, I’m gonna lose it.
Personality traits have nothing to do with hair colour , blondes do not have more fun, red-heads are not hot tempered, brunettes are not brainy ...we are all different 😊
Guns
😔 I know many of these people. I know people with hundreds of guns. People who share pics of their preschool age kids posing with massive automatic weapons (AK whatever, I have no idea the names). I don’t understand it and I grew up around it. My elementary school was always closed on the first day of deer hunting season.
Their own perceived persecution/ victimization.
"Being suppressed and personally attacked is who I am."
This will get buried, but some of these things become a person's entire personality because it consumes a majority of their life. Typically at a young age.
Kids that saw active duty in Afghanistan, living that 24 hours a day, yeah, probably has a large influence on your personality.
Woman with 3 small kids, raising them while her partner is absent (could be a deadbeat, could be working 18 hrs a day to support them), is gonna have a lot of anecdotes about motherhood.
Point being, some individuals choose not to grow. Some just don't get the opportunity to.
Edit: Thanks for the awards.
It's funny, i saw a lot of violence and death growing up in a conflict zone. I only ever talk about it here. I don't talk about it to my wife or kids. Definitely not to friends. But it can be hard to "just get over it". I still wake up at night screaming. A single mom of three kids, that was my mom. My father was taken when i was little. She never talks about that either. I don't think it's what defines us as people though. My mother is a doctor and educator. I am an engineer and artist. My brothers are a scientist and an architect. We are all voracious readers. Nietzsche said, "to live is to suffer, to survive is to find some meaning in the suffering". I think he got it backwards. I think living is looking into the moments between the suffering. Living in the cracks will be joy, springing up like flowers in the sidewalk. You can can keep walking, or you can sprinkle a little water, and watch those flowers bloom. Just don't be too hard on yourself for feeling a little dry sometimes.
Harry Potter and I’m sick of pretending that a 45 year old woman running around saying she’s a f*****g Hufflepuff is normal.
Loving Disney.
I mean, it's good to know if you're going to join me if I bust out some "I'll Make a Man" in public, but you can have other dimensions too.
Being a youtuber
here, enjoy a thumbnail i made for such a time YOUTUBEGOB...dcb913.png
Born-again Evangelicals
My ex-husband became "born again" after we divorced. He hooked up with and married the woman he'd been having an affair with for years. Doesn't get more holy than that...
Having kids
My world does revolve around my son, but I don’t disagree with you. I may tell you a story about my kid but I promise I’ll pick a ridiculous one you will love (wanna hear about when he opened a penis store?) and I will happily listen to your story about your cat, car, job, shirt, whatever because that’s how conversation and relationships work. I will not expect anything because I’m a mama bear and I do not think I’m more important or better. Oh, and I will read you the first time I tell you a kid story and won’t do it again if you’re annoyed or bored. Regardless, I’m guilty of this.
Being overworked and barely sleeping.
Edit: To clarify, this isn’t meant to be an insult. I know exactly how it feels to work an ungodly amount of hours with little to no reprieve. It’s a routine that’s become ingrained in us and I think it’s important to remember being overworked, under slept, and having little to no time to ourselves is not healthy.
I hate when people tell me I look tired And I say "yeah, kinda tired from work" And someone else goes balistic saying they havent slept for X days, had so much work And Kids And husband.. Like ok? I dont have those but I still can feel tired from working 8 hours, 5 days of week, ok? I dont see any glorification in working till your early death
Faking Mental Disorders. Ideally DID and such.
I can understand those who do have these disorders and just want to spread awareness and the struggle in their lives. But be aware that not everybody tells the truth, especially internet influencers. Whether it's for views, money, popularity, or attention.
I get annoyed when people say, "I'm so OCD". I have a friend with OCD. He needs constant help. He's in therapy for stress related anxiety, he can't hold a job. He can't even leave his apartment. Wanting things to be neat and organized isn't a mental illness. Also, getting excited isn't ADHD. It is a serious effective emotional disorder that requires treatment. People with ADHD cannot regulate their emotions in the same way that others can. Being Hyper or lacking Attention is the tip of a much larger proverbial iceberg.
‘Girl bosses’/MLM cult engagers
And social media.
"HEY GIRL. Haven't heard from you since High School. Glad I found you. How have you been? Anyways, I wanted to reach out to invite you to a party. Just a small get-together with some AMAZING friends of mine. We'll have wine and catch up. Have you heard of Keto? When you come by I'll tell you all about it." That was the last I ever heard from her.
Alcohol. It’s so annoying. Constant posts of drink in their hand, every selfie is a drink in their hand. Or a random day during the week “I’m home from work, some one stop me from drinking 🤪”
middle aged woman: "it's WINE O CLOCK HAHAHAHA IM HILARIOUS AND SO QUIRKY gin GIN GIN PROSECCO LOLS" .... (im guilty of liking wine but i dont make it a joke or personality trait)
Pickup trucks. There are people that happen to own pickup trucks, then there are people who's pickup truck owns them.
We all know the type, flood lights, muddn tires, grill racks, lifted, spotless paint with a wax, and optionally a diesel stack coming out of the bed, truck muts, and a snorkel.
I get it, printing out business cards that tell people that you're a douche would be difficult to distribute on the highway at 70mph, but it might be more cost effective than your $100K Raptor.
We call these "Payment Princesses" where i live. I own a pickup truck with an all terrain package because i go backcountry a lot. The truck got detailed because i spilled something sticky inside so it was shiny and perfect. I came out of a store and found a bunch of guys standing around it checking it out. As i approahed, they started asking what other accessories i had or started suggesting some that would not improve my performance. I finally got mad and "It's a (boop) truck. It does truck things. She's not here to look pretty." They were so offended
Smoking weed
I'm a Cannabis-American and I take offense at your denial of my culture /s
being a 'dog mom' or having a 'fur baby'
Sex. I don't even mean sexuality I mean the coomers and the guys who stalk this sub and ask 11 NSFW questions a day about "Hey ladies what do men get wrong about your bods" and "Ladies, what's your sexiest sex sexual experience where sex was had and it was sexy?"
Lust controls some of these people man. They gotta go outside.
Coomers?Stalking subs? Is this in a BDSM club or something? God I feel so old lol
I’m in recovery and there are some people who make their entire personality being in the program. It’s their entire life. I understand it for people who are new because some have literally had to change everything and they NEED recovery to be their life for a while in order to stay clean and stay alive. That’s perfectly fine, but when you have 25 years clean and you still go to 6 meetings a week, go to every single event and your life entirely revolves around it, it might be time to maybe branch out a little.
I’ve distanced myself from these people in the last few years. I stick to the few small meetings that these people don’t frequent, call my sponsor when I need too and have a handful of close friends. Other than that, I have an entire life outside of recovery. I have other friends, hobbies and goals to achieve and don’t really talk about recovery unless I’m asked about
It. I feel this is healthier.
Being a fan Elon musk
You ever see a police officers wife? It's crazy but they turn their entire existence into being a police spouse, it's very odd. I have two neighbors that are police, they younger the wife the more intense the alternate reality they create for themselves. The husbands never mention their profession but the wifes cant shut up about it and try and prove how much they know about local law enforcement.
My sister is police qife And she is absolutely normal, she loves men in uniforms, Everybody knows that, but its Just a funny quirk we all get behind than being obnoxious
Being confidently incorrect.
Anime
I enjoy watching anime. But then I see other folks who spend a ton of money cosplaying Random characters. Going to conventions in those multilayered cosplays. They buy a f**k ton of figurines, posters, swords, flags, etc.
I don't really find that annoying at all. Cause I have a bunch of jerseys, go to professional sporting events and I have like three posters. And I also play Fantasy football in like 4 leagues. A league I've been in for a decade. Two money leagues and a charity league..... I'm sure Fantasy football will be listed here....so I get the passion
What I do find annoying is how they confuse their anime fanhood and convert it to Japan fanhood. Some go as far as thinking Japan is the greatest country and they want to move there. Like look man. Sushi, Ramen, and Tempura is great but Japan is as flawed as most countries and maybe even more flawed than others. Their Work Life Balance is stupid. You often hear about how people work 20 hr days sometimes and die of exhaustion. It's adding on to a declining population. Japan's population declined from 128 mil in early 2010s to 120 mil. There's also High rates of depression and a lack of mental health care in Japan. People aren't as opening as you think they are to. Not saying this is specific to Japan I'm just saying that in Japan isn't as open as you think it is like enjoy the anime
Music, I know some people who are so snobby about their music choices.
As a lifelong improviser, composer, and jazz pianist, I found that no religion can make a human feel the level of joy that music does. It becomes a passion. Should not criticize anyone for surrounding their life with something creative and uplifting!
Politicians they follow
Upon listening to every candidate during election question period, they all sound the same. They all waste time thanking everyone and every opportunity they've had in their life, reminiscing about something that happened in their family 20 years ago and then barely answer the question in the last 2 seconds, and usually going over the time limit. No matter the party, there's very, very little impacts I've noticed in my life that has been changed so dramatically that wouldn't have happened if different party was elected.
Driving a Tesla
When I see one on the road I watch out : a lot of them are driven by rich people without driving skills. Over here they are cheap to run (if you can afford the investment) because of tax write-offs.
Being in the military.
Here it's just a job. Granted : an interesting and sometimes risky one, but done by all kinds of people : straight/gay, morning/evening people, grumpy/friendly, right/left wing, rock/classical/techno lovers....
Their beard. As a guy with a beard it’s annoying. Although it’s not quite as bad as it was 5 years ago or so. We get it. You have a beard
Me : sometimes just too lazy or lacking the energy to shave more than once a week.
Wokeism
Counterpoint: using the word "woke" to mean anything you're having a hissy fit about at the time.
Here in the Netherlands people who live in Amsterdam base their personality on Amsterdam
Their job
This may be an unpopular opinion but this post is rather ridiculous and judgy and nitpicky. Why does it matter? Is it getting in your way? At the end of the day everyone's personality is going to be associated with and deeply entangled with something external after all.
It is more than someone liking something, what this is about, imo, is people who become completely absorbed into things. That thing is the only thing they can talk about, or every topic somehow makes its way back to that one thing. Fanatics more than fans. They are all encompassed by it.
Load More Replies...ooh those are annoying, especially the elitist ones on unicycles
Load More Replies...BoredPanda used to be a website that focused on artwork quirky and feel good stories around the world. However, now I feel like so many of their listicles are negative and judgmental and just for click bait.
Load More Replies...A little bit concerned about how many people were quick to tell queer people to shut up about being queer. :/
I am a bit concerned that people think that if a gay person speaks their mind about something "controversial", it means that the opinion is now invalid or anti-queer. Yes, us queers can be rude, annoying and a-holes. And many do go over-board with making "being gay" their only trait.
Load More Replies...Well what a lovely list of self righteous twits giving there opinions- often clearly rooted in forms of misogyny or internalized homophobia.
I was gonna mention the internalized homophobia. Three of 'em in the first dozen posts. Sad. If people want to be out, loud, and proud, good for them! They may have spent their youth being told they were weirdos, perverts, and sinners. Maybe harassed and bullied on a regular basis. The freedom to finally be yourself is a big deal.
Load More Replies...Basically, anyone who creates their persona around a single obsession is boring. Whether it's collecting stamps or conspiracy theories, variety is the spice of life.
Hunting, I drive for FedEx and I’m on the road all day. The biggest bumper sticker violators are the ones who need to let everyone know they hunt, and they ALWAYS have some item of woodland camouflage on at all times.
it's a mistake to base your personality on your job... are you living your own life story out, or somebody else's cliched expectations of how you should act in your job role?... Look to any group of licensed professionals for examples... These people do a metamorphosis when they get home after a long day, calm down, and turn back into their regular self.... Lawyers have got to be the worst at this...
This whole list was (mostly) a plea for people to have more than one interest and I'd say the vast majority of people do. It may have been dumb but it killed some time and that's the purpose of this site so I'm not mad about it.
Fat Activism, screeching 24/7 about diet culture, fat phobia, thin privilege and making Rebel Wilson’s weight loss all about them.
This is probably the most judgey, picky, b:tcy article I have seen on BP. Doesn't feel right.
Really, there shouldn’t be any one thing that defines you. That would be…one dimensional :D I don’t know anyone who taken one thing and made it their entire persona
After reading these and the comments all I can say is...just let people be who they are. If it's not for you, don't participate.
You ride a HONDA (snicker) My bikes outside, where's yours? The road is wet. It might rain, etc. (Went back to my beer)
I don't care what you ride. My only consideration is if you're a rider or a biker. With bikers it's all about the bike and its cult of personality. Riders just ride, sure, they love their bike but as a tool - a fantastic means to an end.
Load More Replies...Wow, this is not a good post..... Just because someone gives expression to an important part of their lives, doesn't mean they base their whole personality around that part. This seams more like an post about "what I feel uncomfortable seeing in other people about myself" and that's ok. Just don't express it like this, it makes you seem judgemental and petty.
This may be an unpopular opinion but this post is rather ridiculous and judgy and nitpicky. Why does it matter? Is it getting in your way? At the end of the day everyone's personality is going to be associated with and deeply entangled with something external after all.
It is more than someone liking something, what this is about, imo, is people who become completely absorbed into things. That thing is the only thing they can talk about, or every topic somehow makes its way back to that one thing. Fanatics more than fans. They are all encompassed by it.
Load More Replies...ooh those are annoying, especially the elitist ones on unicycles
Load More Replies...BoredPanda used to be a website that focused on artwork quirky and feel good stories around the world. However, now I feel like so many of their listicles are negative and judgmental and just for click bait.
Load More Replies...A little bit concerned about how many people were quick to tell queer people to shut up about being queer. :/
I am a bit concerned that people think that if a gay person speaks their mind about something "controversial", it means that the opinion is now invalid or anti-queer. Yes, us queers can be rude, annoying and a-holes. And many do go over-board with making "being gay" their only trait.
Load More Replies...Well what a lovely list of self righteous twits giving there opinions- often clearly rooted in forms of misogyny or internalized homophobia.
I was gonna mention the internalized homophobia. Three of 'em in the first dozen posts. Sad. If people want to be out, loud, and proud, good for them! They may have spent their youth being told they were weirdos, perverts, and sinners. Maybe harassed and bullied on a regular basis. The freedom to finally be yourself is a big deal.
Load More Replies...Basically, anyone who creates their persona around a single obsession is boring. Whether it's collecting stamps or conspiracy theories, variety is the spice of life.
Hunting, I drive for FedEx and I’m on the road all day. The biggest bumper sticker violators are the ones who need to let everyone know they hunt, and they ALWAYS have some item of woodland camouflage on at all times.
it's a mistake to base your personality on your job... are you living your own life story out, or somebody else's cliched expectations of how you should act in your job role?... Look to any group of licensed professionals for examples... These people do a metamorphosis when they get home after a long day, calm down, and turn back into their regular self.... Lawyers have got to be the worst at this...
This whole list was (mostly) a plea for people to have more than one interest and I'd say the vast majority of people do. It may have been dumb but it killed some time and that's the purpose of this site so I'm not mad about it.
Fat Activism, screeching 24/7 about diet culture, fat phobia, thin privilege and making Rebel Wilson’s weight loss all about them.
This is probably the most judgey, picky, b:tcy article I have seen on BP. Doesn't feel right.
Really, there shouldn’t be any one thing that defines you. That would be…one dimensional :D I don’t know anyone who taken one thing and made it their entire persona
After reading these and the comments all I can say is...just let people be who they are. If it's not for you, don't participate.
You ride a HONDA (snicker) My bikes outside, where's yours? The road is wet. It might rain, etc. (Went back to my beer)
I don't care what you ride. My only consideration is if you're a rider or a biker. With bikers it's all about the bike and its cult of personality. Riders just ride, sure, they love their bike but as a tool - a fantastic means to an end.
Load More Replies...Wow, this is not a good post..... Just because someone gives expression to an important part of their lives, doesn't mean they base their whole personality around that part. This seams more like an post about "what I feel uncomfortable seeing in other people about myself" and that's ok. Just don't express it like this, it makes you seem judgemental and petty.