Here is a really innocuous example: When I was like eighteen, I had some button down shirts from when I was around thirteen. I hadn’t grown that much, but I’d started working out seriously and the shoulders did not fit. So I cut off the sleeves and wore the middle part of the shirt with the cuffs. It made a cute slutty outfit. A couple of my friends liked the idea and did the same thing. I thought that was cool until someone I was dating saw me dressed up and was like, “oh, you are wearing your shirt like so-and-so.” It had not occurred to me that having my friends like my idea would mean I would not get credit for it. Not like getting credit for deconstructing a particular style of outfit I no longer wear is super important, but it really bugged me and I didn’t know how to respond. Besides dumping my date that is.
Sometimes I get stressed out about saying what I think either online or in person because it really gets on my nerves when people repeat something I said like they just thought of it. The sort of people who do this often do not even know they are doing it and will even say it back to me like I might be interested to know this thing . . . that I said in the first place.
Of course, people who snarf other people’s words or behaviors for commercial purposes are even worse, but at least they are doing it on purpose and probably know they are doing it.
Does this happen to you and how do you or would you deal with it?