There are some habits people usually have that prevent them from being happy and living a more fulfilling life.
Sometimes we go through life with pretty much everything we would like to have but something feels wrong and we can’t quite figure out what it is.
We can blame it on external factors, but sometimes, and just sometimes, it’s not caused by external factors. It may be resulting from some of the bad habits we have.
Since the list of all possible bad habits is huge, let us have a look at just some of them that should be eliminated if you want to make being happy your priority.
1. Perfectionism
Striving for perfection is actually commendable in many cases. It shows that you are willing to go that extra mile to make everything be on point. It means that your work will be flawless and will have the least mistakes possible. The thing is people who don’t accept any standards short of pinpoint perfection will find being happy quite hard. It makes a person bitter if they fail to hit the targets they expected to hit and it may even affect a person themselves, leading to low self-esteem.
You need to accept that you can’t always be perfect, and some levels of perfection are even beyond human capability. Know that there is a thing called ‘Good Enough’ and reduce the pressure you pile on yourself. This gives you room to surprise yourself and even helps you to receive satisfaction from your results, which makes you happy.
2. Comparing Yourself To Others
This behavior right here is very damaging and destructive to a person. Comparing yourself to others is pretty much psychological suicide. You compare what you have or what you can do. You look at what others have achieved and forget that you also have your own achievements and strengths.
You need to cut that out and the only comparison you should make is comparing yourself to yourself. Challenge yourself. Look at where you started and see if you have made any progress. Compare current results to previous results and see where you are headed. You also need to be kinder to others and you will slowly find that you’re kind to yourself. We often treat other people the way we see ourselves. If you focus on the positive things and aspects about other people, you will definitely see the positive things about you and you will manage to appreciate yourself.
3. Overcomplicating Life
To put it simply, life can be hard, and there’s a lot that is not right in life that generally makes it complicated. That we can’t dispute. It brings about stress, anger, hurt and unhappiness. The thing, however, is this: we are the ones who create most of this confusion in our lives. We have accepted that life is complex and we have come up with our own solutions in a bid to cope and as it turns out, we make things worse for ourselves.
Since we can’t control what happens during the day, the best thing to do is to focus on, say, three very important agendas we want to address that day and let the rest of it play out as it will. This helps you to avoid splitting your focus over ten mini-agendas and ending up doing very little, not to mention being grumpy at the end of the day.
It helps a lot if you ask people questions or tell them what you feel instead of making all sorts of assumptions in your head that probably aren’t true. It helps you to create bonds with people and to avoid actual conflicts and misunderstandings.
4. Too Much Focus On The Past And The Future
There are people who focus a lot on their past failures, painful memories, fights, conflicts and so on. Others can’t stop thinking about how they want their future to be, what could possibly go wrong with their projects, their financial status, they worry about what can happen if they do not meet their targets and goals. This kind of thinking brings nothing but stress, fear and certainly will prevent you from being happy.
You need to understand that the past can’t be unwritten and that there is nothing much you can do about your future until you get there. You should learn from your past mistakes as you plan for the days to come. Also, do not dwell too much on past success. It can be as damaging as dwelling on past failure. The whole point here is to live in the moment as it will help you to be more productive in the present.
5. Dwelling On The Negative Details Of Life
If you are the kind of person who will manage to find fault, no matter how good something is, then congratulations, you are on your way to unhappiness. This behavior not only affects you but also affects those around you. It can dampen the mood for everyone around you and you will take them all down with you. I doubt they will like you much after that.
You need to understand that not everything can work out to perfection. You need to accept that things may go wrong here and there, but that’s what makes success sweet: overcoming those obstacles that came up along the way. Accept situations as they are and spare yourself the mental torture. You can also focus on being constructive. When something goes wrong, focus on finding a solution.
6. Thinking That It’s About You
There are those who always think that everything is about them and the world revolves around them. This makes them limit their lives in such way that they don’t try anything new because they fear what people will say about them. It makes them less open to trying new things and ultimately, hinders their growth too.
You need to realize that people don’t care much about what you’re doing. They also have their lives to worry about and some of them also worry about how others perceive them. The point is not to give people too much power in your mind. In fact, what you should focus on during times like these is not you but others. Listen to other people and help them solve their issues and problems. This will help you to take the focus away from yourself and release some of the pressure that had piled up on you.
7. Toxic People And Voices
If you spend your time around toxic people, it will definitely prevent you from being happy. These are people who keep complaining and live in negativity. They are the kind of people who will not encourage you. Instead, they will drag you down with them.
The first thing here is to figure out what company you should keep and what company you should avoid. Find people who will help you see the positive side of things, regardless of how bad things get. Listen to music, read books, watch movies and shows that make you laugh, do something to lighten up your mood and you will be able to see life clearly and in a new way.
Conclusion
Well, I promised you seven habits and here they are. Some of these habits may be news to some people, others knew that they had them but had no solutions. You probably know a person with some of these habits and you can try to help them to get through the rough patch. Whatever or whoever it is, allow nothing to stop you from being happy. Be happy and you will be productive.
source and courtesy: Life Advancer