Dealing With Negative People

You may not conscious of it, but many of the people you interact with every day have a less than rosy outlook on life and can often behave negatively as a result. All their negative small talk, sighs, and groans may not seem like much, but over time, they can have an impact on your own disposition. So if you've decided resolutely to be positive in your attitude from now on, how do you keep these naysayers from getting you down?

Now it's not unlikely that some of the negative people I mentioned earlier are your close friends and even family. When it comes to these people, it can be quite impossible for you to simply avoid them. Besides, they're probably genuinely concerned about you, but don't mistake concern for knowing. Just because they care about you doesn't mean that whatever they say has value. In fact, some of the things they say may even be quite detrimental to your well-being.

So don't believe everything you hear, even if it's from close friends and family. Their lack of understanding about your position maybe what causing them to be negative about your plans and opinions. It may also simply be their fear for your safety and welfare. But you should be clearest about where you're headed. Be firm and make up your own mind.

You may also be making yourself vulnerable to the negative sways of others because you feel you need their approval. You may be feeling insufficient in some way and have come to rely on the acceptance of others to feel validated. But if you depend on the approval of others to feel good or right about yourself and what you're doing, you're at the mercy of their restricting and probably questionable beliefs.

If you are to ever be at peace with who you are, you have to let go of the need for approval.

And finally, guess who's the most dangerous negative person you could ever have the misfortune of meeting?

It's You.

Your own negative and limiting thoughts and self talk have the most devastating effect on you simply because you're constantly in communication with yourself. You can shape your mind by shaping your thoughts. What's more, most people around you are simply reflecting back the negative view you have of yourself. So make sure that you maintain a positive frame of mind by adopting the right attitude and exposing yourself to the appropriate kinds of literature and media.

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Eugine Loh, 938Live, MediaCorp Pte Ltd