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Dear scholars, A glimpse of one’s decorum, gestures and actions, A speck of one’s reflections of physical image and appearance, All intertwined to form a judgment, to serve an impression.

So powerful these propriety and gesticulations could be, They often hold mere speculations, And as it grows into conversation, it intensifies one’s intuitions.

Perceptions transcend with much discernment, Forming silhouettes and strings of stories Of truth and gentle insights, By just a mere revelation.

I penned this poem on my flight back from Dubai recently. I was thinking hard on how best to tell you that first impression matters a lot in all the dealings in our life – interviews, social engagements, and many others. It certainly takes ef-forts to be prepared. People form judgements and they do it so fast. So, be ahead of the game. Strategize, make efforts and ensure others see the best in you from the beginning and nail those pursuits, whatever they are.

Sincerely,

Intan

Scholar’s Studio

Reem Hmayed Danial Izat Muhammad Safwan Zulaika

Activities & Happenings YKPSP Corner

In This Issue Highlight of the Month

From the Editor’s Desk

First Impression

Volume 4, Issue 9, September 2017

A Reflection of the Inner You

By Reem Hmayed Degree in Medicine Acibadem University

What exactly is the importance of first impression? Why does it matter so much? Why do we care about it this much and we aim to give the best impression during our first encounter with some-one? Some people assume that it is merely superficial act and that we cannot judge a book by its cover. Well, it turns out that we actually can! Various researches and studies on the anticipation of the human brain to a new person show that you actually do imprint an image of a person upon the first encounter. This for-mulated image lasts for an immense amount of time and is some-how hard to replace.

Scientifically speaking, your brain forms an impression of a new person within just one-tenth of a second! This image is processed within a minute and various aspects of the other person are ana-lyzed and recorded. These aspects are processed in the brain’s emotional centers and instantly result in an overall assessment of the person whether he is a threat or an asset. This may be consid-ered as a protective protocol followed by the brain. In addition to their fast registration, these images also last for a long period of time. Researchers have found that the primary image of someone needs up to six months of regular contact to be changed. This is a result of what is known as the “primacy effect”; where people care more about things they learn initially about someone rather than information they may gain later. They even tend to look for clues that support their initial assumption.

Furthermore, first impression is surprisingly highly accurate, as studies have shown. One theory that clearly explains this is people often would reflect their personalities through their facial expres-sions. For instance, people with kind faces often turn out to be kind. Thus, our moods are translated into our body language and we often act and move according to our inner personalities. In short, our first impression most of the time is a reflection of who we are inside. Hence, if we want to improve our first impressions we should primarily enhance our inner self and then learn how to present it truly.

Bearing in mind that merely working on our appearances would not get us through half the way of improving our impression.

So the next time you have a job interview, a college application interview, or simply meeting a new friend, you should really pay attention on giving a good impression. Once you have mastered the art of first impression, you would notice the effect it has on your interactions and relationships. Results may not always be as you expect them to be, but at least you would make sure that you did your best in portraying yourself. Finally, remember that first impression is a reflection of the inner you! Of who you are. So when you are aiming for improvement, start with the basis and do not just polish the outer layer. Good luck!

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Why First Impression Matters?

Danial Izat Year 10 Marlborough College Malaysia

Writing this article was as complicated as finding a needle in a haystack, from one source to the other, nothing was similar; nothing seemed to align to my pathway of thinking. Of course, everyone could have a go at why ‘First Impressions Matter’, but why should I? Isn’t it obvious why it matters? Well, in most cases, first impressions do matter up to a point.

You wouldn’t approach a man who’s questionably had his hair-style out-dated by now, wearing his long greasy locks tapered with the stripes of black and white- oblivious of his old age, thinking how stylish he looks in dark leather tights.

Well, of course not.

If he were Steven Tyler, it’d probably be cool. You see, this is where ‘First Impressions’ don’t play their part.

I couldn’t deny the fact that first impressions matter, but second impressions matter as well as the third, fourth, and not to men-tion the fifth.

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.You get it. Steven Tyler is not cool because of his preferences, but cool in the manner of the profession he pursues, that is singing! If I was this bloke who lived half of his life within the depths of the Krubera Cave, I could still probably hear the shrieks of Steven Tyler screaming his way through months of touring across the small land of Georgia (which is where this Krubera Cave is), right? Of course not. I would think of how inappropriate and dis-gusting this middle-aged man’s choice of clothing is. Let’s be real here, you own a multimillion-dollar mansion and still can’t afford to dress properly.

I’m aware of how professional this article about ‘First Impres-sions’ is, and how it seems that I’m ranting about middle-aged rock stars. To clarify things, first impressions don’t really matter in certain circumstances. Unless, it’s an advertisement for how good a certain product is, a first impression is the only impres-sion. For example, if Snickers were to publicise their only product, they’d need a jaw-dropping picture of the insides of their famous bar of chocolate spewing out its contents, exposing the salty and luxurious caramel as well as their signature nougat filling to catch the attention of the many omnivores roaming our Earth. Otherwise, if it was about a certain friend you met on the first day of school, only time will tell. As time pasts, she might be the last person you think of at the end of high school or the one girl you’d fancy to date by the end of term.

In conclusion, my point is that first impressions are often exag-gerated. In all seriousness, I believe strongly that we as human beings often overlook the personalities and characteristics of shy and introverted people who are different. In addition, our fellow companions shouldn’t be judged fully based on first impression. As the famous saying goes, ‘don’t judge a book by its cover’.

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First Impression Does Matter By Muhammad Safwan Ahmad Fadzil Doctor of Philosophy (Applied Physics) UPM

All of us are very familiar with an idiom “Don’t judge a book by its cover”. But you now that it is physically impossible to not to. Most of us tend to make assumption based on our first experi-ence with someone. First impressions are so powerful that they can override what we are told about the people. You never get a second chance to make a good first impression. The fact is that when you first meet a person, he makes a judgment about you in approximately four seconds, and his judgment is finalized largely within 30 seconds of the initial contact.

People tend to make assumption and inference based on their first observation is due to a complex physiological principle known as heuristic. According to an article “The recognition heuristic: a review of theory and tests” by Thorsten Pachur, a heuristic is a mental shortcut that allows people to solve prob-lems and make judgments quickly and efficiently which usually involve focusing on one aspect of a complex problem and ignor-ing others. Heuristics are helpful in many situations, but they can also lead to cognitive biases which deviate from logic or rational choice theory.

Here is a simple example of situation pertaining to heuristic. Im-agine you are admitted in the ward and waiting for the doctor. When someone comes into your room with formal attire covered by a white coat with a stethoscope around their neck, these de-sirable uniforms make you to believe that this particular person is a doctor in charge. Without any hesitation, you allow the doc-tor to perform any physical assessment for the sake of your health. The question is why you dare to allow someone who you don't know well to run full diagnostic on your body without knowing the fact that is that a real doctor?

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See, deep down in our brain is a deeply coded rule of thumb known as heuristic. We have the heuristic to tell us that the person who wears this kind of attire is most likely to be a doctor. The doctor’s appearance gives a huge effect on patients' confidence and trust. Without heuristic, you will never make assumption about any-thing.

Heuristics tell us to make quick assumption about people. Even if we're presented with lots of evidence to the contrary, we're at-tached to our initial impressions of people which are why you should be aware of the impression you make on others. Luckily there are simple guidelines for wowing new acquaintances. First, dress appropriately because the person you are meeting for the first time does not know you and your appearance is usually the first clue he or she has to go on. Be on time during the meeting. This is a kind of respect to other person and to get the relationship started at the right foot. Besides, get a right posture as good pos-ture not only makes you look great but make you feel more confi-dent. Shake hand firmly to make the other person feel you are truly interested to meet them. Lastly, focus 100% on the person you’re speaking to and listen to what they’re saying. You’ll make them feel important.

You have just a few seconds to make a good first impression and it's almost impossible ever to change it. So it's worth giving each new encounter your best shot. You should be yourself but try very hard to be your very best self.

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First Impression

By Nur Zulaika Mohd Zulkephli Bachelor of Psychology University of California Berkeley

Whenever we embark on a new experience, we (mostly uncon-sciously) begin to spin expectations in our minds. The harder you think on those expectations, the more curious you become and I argue, the deeper the impression is engrained in you. For exam-ple, when you are very excited for a new film, and it turns out to be not so great, you are way more unhappy than if you were to go in with less thought in the first place. Either end of the spec-trum tends to equate to a heavier impact. Before the YKLC in Washington DC this past month, I felt this to be true.

I jumped on a plane to Washington DC with a minimal amount of expectation. I had no idea what I was expecting because I was too nervous. After all, this would be my first time attending an event as a YK scholar. I had not been home to Malaysia in over a year and my homesickness was beginning to take over. I was sad that I was only going to DC and not all the way back home. I’m not sure I was prepared for the level of passion and care I was met with. I was not prepared for the impression this event (that I had not spent much time predicting) would have on me. Listen-ing to the care and consideration put into the speeches and presentations I knew that there was something special here.

The first impression I left DC with was a sense of the trust placed in us. From the guests such as the impressive, Tony Fernandez, who joined us through video call and disclosed to us his illustri-ous tale and humble beginnings or Shahzad Bhatti who told us of his philanthropic mission to better education and life for his sons. Not to mention the kind advice and wisdom imparted onto us by Puan Diana Raja Harun, the Vice President of YK and Puan Intan Zalia Mohd Yusof, SVP of YK .

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This year's YK CR Day 2017 was held at Taman Botani Shah Alam with the theme EXPLORE, DREAM & DISCOVER. One of

the objectives is to encourage and introduce a healthy lifestyle and activities to the young generation. Children from Rumah

Kebajikan At Taqwa Puchong Perdana were invited to join the scholars for a day of great fun and adventure!!

Or the tiniest details like the mee goreng and curry puffs that transported me back home. But perhaps the most influential message was found towards the very end of the conference, when we were all congregated in the big embassy hall. Encik Kamarul Bahrein, the Man-aging Director, was talking to us about the faith he was placing in us to protect Malaysia for his grandchildren. It was so touching to hear this and as I looked around at my fellow scholars, the mentors I had gained, and my new friends, I felt at home.

I became increasingly aware of the commitment we have engaged in with our country. Although we are students and people, in engag-ing with YK, Mara, JPA and other such organizations, we have been extended a unique opportunity to represent Malaysia. And not only are we given a chance, we are also accepting a responsibility to take care of and to nurture the world we see growing around us. We are coming of age alongside our nation and what an honor it is to be able to have a hand in the shaping of our future. Our beloved Ma-laysia.

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Axiom Programme with our Form 3 - Form 5

scholars at KYS.. This is part of our develop-

ment programme for the kiddos

Top: En Mohd Fuad Ahmad (one of the

Mentors) engagement session with his

mentees Sara and Izzati. To other

Mentees please remember to connect

with your Mentors ya!

Left: It’s always a pleasure catching

up with our scholars. Thank you to our

Watan & Asia scholars at Johor for

taking their time to have lunch with

us.

Yayasan Khazanah Leadership Conference: Leadership Challenges - Navigating &

Shaping the Future, 30th September 2017, Washington DC

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H eal i ng the Wor ld Tog e ther

YKPSP Team had two programmes in September; Community in Me (CBL) with 8 undergraduates and High

Impact Leadership (HIL) with 17 postgraduates. Let’s have a look at some of the best photos & video teas-

ers we have..

Next YKPSP Session

To those attending, do have a look at your email inbox for our updates. Do en-

sure that you have joined the WhatsApp group created by Iman :)

YKUG GBR : Getting the Basics Right

22 —28 October 2017

YKUG CBL at Rumah Kasih Harmoni Paya Jaras YKPG HIL at Sunway Putra Hotel, KL

Visit Yayasan Khazanah YouTube Channel for programme teasers!

YKUG CBL Sept Teaser | YKPG HIL Sept Teaser