20 Days of Chill - Popularity

Photo Credit

Day 19 of A 'lil HooHaa's 20 Days of Chill!

Today's prompt is 

Popularity

I have been trying to come up with an explanation of what makes a person popular, and I think it's super hard.


Let's go back in time to Kindergarten and Elementary School. Many times when playing games or completing a project we had to pick a partner or a team, and typically some kids were always chosen first. 

Why? What did they have? I'm not even talking about sports where you could argue that some run faster or catch / shoot better, it was all about pecking order.

While young kids are usually easygoing, one day they're friends with one kid, the next they make a new friend, things change in high school. If you don't make it into a clique you're a loser, simply put.

When I try to describe the qualities of the popular kids I would say they were pretty enough to be good-looking, smart enough to be successful and kind enough to be well-liked all around. But they were not the fanciest, most intelligent or socially competent - that's probably why nobody envied them too much.

On our way to hockey practice I asked my son. He's in 3rd grade and must know. He considers his friends and himself as popular. He also told me about two new girls who joined his class within the past 12 months.

C is tall and skinny, wears the latest fashion, is the only one who owns a cell phone, brings sweets to recess and is not all that interested in what the teacher is saying all day. She'd rather doodle or chat.

J plays the violin and prefers classical music as both of her parents are professional musicians. She wears unconventional clothes and isn't interested in gadgets and video games. 

C ended up being the least, J the most popular girl of their class. (J is also my son's girlfriend, and I secretly call her my daughter-in-law! She likes my cooking and baking!)

What do you think? What makes a person more popular than the next?

Please also visit my colleagues to find out what they've come up. Can you believe we'll be posting for the last time tomorrow? Don't miss the last city post - we're going to Sydney, Australia!