Pessimism is the state of mind of a person who always expects the worst in every situation. A pessimistic approach towards life leads to unhappiness way before something bad even happens. It keeps you second guessing every decision you make and shows little to no optimism. In a literal sense, to be pessimistic means you believe that bad things outweigh the good things, and nothing good is likely to happen around you. It makes a person feel everything negative and can easily affect the people around you. Who really wants to be with that kind of person? Yeah, the answer is no one.
The word pessimist comes to us from the Latin word, pessimus, which means, “worst”. People with pessimistic tendencies aren’t too hard to find. You can judge the character of a person by spending minimum five minutes with them. If they’re upset about the weather, the traffic, and basically everything else around them, then they’re definitely not a rainbow-and-cookie kind of person. That’s your cue to get away from them right now! Since our happiness is largely dependent upon the type of people we associate ourselves with, we’re likely to get affected by the way people behave.
Are you surrounded by pessimists and don’t know how to get away? Don’t worry, you’ve come to the right place. I can’t guarantee this will help because you need to pluck up the courage to call their attitude out first. What if it’s someone you’re close to? Are you ready to tell them they have an unhealthy influence on you which needs to change? If so, then keep reading.
I’ve listed five tactics you can use to avoid letting the pessimistic people get the best of you.
1. Don’t Let Them Feel Victimized by You
Usually, pessimists aren’t all that bad, but they have that approach where they inherently feel victimized. If things aren’t going their way, they start blaming the whole universe for conspiring against them. It might be just one bad thing, but they’ll make it look like the whole world is somehow going wrong.
You should try to put a stop to their attitude by reaching out to them in a constructive manner. Make them understand their life isn’t all bad and they’re the master of how they perceive things. Help them get out of that ‘victim’ shell of theirs.
2. Avoid Resentful Behavior
Often, a pessimist isn’t even aware of his/her resentful behavior, but that’s how they are. They naturally neglect the disturbing pattern in their mental health. They might develop anger or rage over small things that they usually have no reason to fuss about. You must deal with this carefully to avoid becoming their target. Try to replace envy with something you have, take the approach where you can count your own blessings and try to reinforce this quality in them as well.
3. Reassess Your Thoughts
Pessimists can often influence the way we think. Maybe they make you so distracted that you can’t contribute positively to society and find yourself thinking like a pessimist. You can’t let that happen. You should refocus and collect positive thoughts to make yourself feel better. Work to be more productive instead of wasting away in negativity. You can also work better on your positivity if you keep a check on how your thoughts are changed when you’re surrounded by pessimistic attitudes. Try to make an effort to avoid spending your energy on negative thoughts and people. Welcome the pessimists in this exercise if you think they will listen.
4. Focus On Your Self-Esteem
Having an incredibly low self-esteem can also make a person pessimistic. Try to focus on your self-worth. Know you aren’t to be let down by anyone, know that you’re good enough, and help your pessimist buddy to realize this as well. Self-love should be a priority for anyone who feels bad things always happen to them. The more you believe in yourself, the more optimistic you become.
5. Seek out Optimistic People
There are always two sides of a picture. If one is dark, the other is bright. Pessimism is the dark side. While it can be difficult to be positive all the time when you’re surrounded by so much negativity, it’s always good to seek out positive people who hold optimistic approach. This will help you keep a balance between both sides. When a pessimistic person can make you feel resentful, an optimistic person will find the best response to the situation and brighten up your mood.
Identify the type of people you want to spend time with. They can influence your life in more ways than you’d like to think. It’s all in your hands. Take control and decide what is best for you.
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