Succeeding in life depends on many factors, and most of the factors can be summed up into external and internal factors. Internal factors being our mentality and attitudes while external factors have to do with things around us like our environment and our associations.
In order to succeed and be happy in life, we have to take control of both factors and make sure they both empower us. Based on psychological evidence, man’s major goal in life is happiness. And happiness can only be achieved when you’re mentally sound and your environment is conducive to your desires.
In this article, I’m going to share with you the 6 toxic personalities you have to avoid in order to ensure that you stay happy and also succeed in life. These 6 toxic personalities we are going to look at can impact your mentality in a negative way if you don’t control your association with them. They can lead you to live a stressful life, a life full of fears, regret, resentment, doubts, and depression.
Since we all desire to be happy in life, read through these 6 toxic personalities carefully and try to recognize if there’s any particular one inhibiting your life and happiness currently.
6 Toxic Personalities to Avoid
1. Complainers
“If you have time to whine and complain about something then you have the time to do something about it.” ~ Anthony J. D’Angelo
Our world is full of complainers and people who do nothing but complain.
People who complain too much can drain you of the little energy you have. They exaggerate things and find fault in everything. This toxic attitude prevents them from seeing the good in anything, and it also blinds them from seeing opportunities around. As an entrepreneur or someone kin on succeeding in life, I’m sure you’ve heard that problems are opportunities if properly utilized. The problem with hanging around complainers is that they’ll influence your thinking and make it impossible for you to spot the opportunities around you.
When you hang around complainers for a long period of time, you also join in their party of complaining. Research shows that constant complaining can lead to emotional imbalance which can lead to frustration, stress, anxiety, and also depression.
2. The Doubters
“Don’t let others tell you what you can’t do. Don’t let the limitations of others limit your vision. If you can remove your self-doubt and believe in yourself, you can achieve what you never thought possible.” ~ Roy T. Bennett
Self-doubt is one of the many reasons why most people never get to pursue their dreams or do anything worthwhile in life. It is a brain activity that is characterized by constant rumination of negative limiting thoughts about one’s abilities and capabilities.
It is said that misery loves company. People who doubt themselves and have lost touch with reality often try to project their fears and doubts unto others, they derive joy in seeing people remain at the same level as they are.
You have to, therefore, be careful of who you hang out with. If your friend, colleague, spouse, or even your family member doesn’t believe in your ability or often question your abilities or capabilities, it is a clear indication that you have to stay clear from them. If you don’t, they’ll poison your mind, and influence you with doubts. You’ll start to question everything about yourself. That alone is the beginning of your failures in life.
If you desire to be successful in life, stay off doubters. Avoid them as you would a plague.
3. People Who are Entitled
“You cannot help people permanently by doing for them, what they could and should do for themselves.” ~ Abraham Lincoln
People who are entitled are one of the most toxic personalities in society. They act as victims and believe everyone else is wrong but themselves. They also believe that things should be handed to them without them working for it.
If you are a careful observer of how things are evolving in our society, you’ll agree that the world has no place for people who are entitled. Our society requires people who can take action, who are bold, and also understand that success comes with hard work and not from complaining.
Yes, things are bad, yes things might not be how they used to be, but complaining alone can’t change it. Change requires action and action alone.
If your goal is to be happy in life and enjoy the beauty life has to offer, you have to stay off people who are entitled, their complaints can drain off the energy left in you.
4. Pretenders
“Be very careful of who you share your problem with, remember that not every friend that smile at you is your best friend.” ~ Kemmy Nola
Our society is filled up with people who pretend to be something they are not. And it is one of the reasons why so many people are stressed out because they’re trying to keep up with the Joneses. Pretending to be something you’re not is leeway to stress and anxiety. It is also one of the reasons why a lot of people commit to stealing – they need to keep up with appearances.
Pretenders make relationships difficult; they make it hard to trust and they make it difficult for people to be truly themselves.
If you desire to be successful, avoid people who pretend. Associate more with people who are real, people who have goals in life, and who are honest about life and themselves. A good way to spot a pretender is to observe their actions rather than what they say. Through their actions, you’d know their true identity.
5. Liars
“Be bad, but at least don’t be a liar, a deceiver!” ~ Leo Tolstoy
Just like pretenders, people who lie a lot are one of the most toxic personalities you should avoid. When trust is out of the equation, establishing a blissful relationship that is based on mutual trust becomes a huge challenge and it can be draining. Why should you live your life constantly looking over your shoulder?
Instead of devoting all your energy trying to dissect every word that comes out of a liar’s mouth, simply avoid them and save your energy. Avoid the emotional trauma that comes from a lying tongue, it’s not worth your time.
If you truly want to be happy and successful in life, it is strongly advised that you disassociate with people who consistently tell lies.
6. People Who Are Emotionally Manipulative
“Relationships with negative people are simply tedious encounters with porcupines. You don’t have the remote knowledge of how to be close to them without quills being shot in your direction.” ~ Shannon L. Alder
Emotional manipulative people use mind games on people who are less observant. They distort the truth and make their victim feel guilty for either something they did or didn’t do.
Emotional manipulation can be experienced in different forms and it happens in friendship, relationships both at work and at home.
The bad part of emotional manipulation is that it makes the person on the receiving side feel drained, afraid, anxious, and sometimes depressed.
Be careful and observant.
Signs of emotional manipulations include:
- When someone is always twisting what you said or did to make you feel bad.
- They use confidential information to manipulate you to do their bidding.
- They gossip about you and try to belittle you in front of others.
- Emotional manipulative people tend to give you conditions towards a certain outcome e.g. if someone asks you to do something to prove your love or loyalty to them when you don’t feel like it, that’s a sign of emotional manipulation.
Conclusion
Your happiness in life should be your basic priority and every other thing should come second. The list above represents only but a few toxic personalities that thwart people’s progress and growth.