….. “Whatever satisfaction people get from being negative, I hope it’s enough—because it’s about the only benefit they’re getting. Meanwhile, it’s costing them plenty.”

I don’t consider myself a negative person even though Michael may disagree some days. (He sees the real and sometimes unpleasant side of my insecurities and stress) However, I have found that when I am around negative people, two things happen to me:

– I become increasingly more negative and start falling into the patterns of the person I’m around.
– Or I shut down because I don’t know how to connect with someone who sees the world so differently.

It’s REALLY hard for me to be patient and compassionate with a consistently negative person because when I’m around them, it seems like everything is falling to pieces. I’m not the best version of myself when I’m around them! So, what does that mean for my business? It means that I can’t surround myself with negative people. There is NO way that I would have grown so quickly if I had negative people in my life. Why? Because negative people have a really hard time being positive about other’s dreams, goals and ideas. They are quick to laugh off things that they wish they could do and they are never the first to offer words of encouragement. They are people who make you second guess every instagram you post because when you’re around them, they make fun of other people’s post and so you’re afraid they’ll do the same to yours. So, naturally, those people come to mind before you share anything because you’re so fearful that you’ll be a victim to their negativity.

Do you see how dangerous this is?? Negative people can STEAL so much from CREATIVE people.

So what do we do? You can’t just tell a negative person to stop being negative. That’s a decision that only they can make! However, here are some ideas for how to move on and not let the Negative Nancy’s of the world steal your joy:

– Recognize who the Negative Nancys are in your life.
– Become aware of the amount of time you spend with them and start paying attention to how much negativity surrounds you when you’re with them. (They always talk about their enemies, life is never good enough, people are always ticking them off, etc.)
– After you recognize the negativity, you will be more equipped to protect yourself from it and you can start preparing yourself to have more GRACE with the Negative Nancy’s of your life.
– Start realizing that most Negative Nancys are negative because there are some insecurities in their life that keep them from being joyful. All negativity stems from a deeper, foundational issue!
– Pray and plan for a time to approach your Negative Nancy and share your heart about the issue if you think it could be well-received.
– Plan for a period of distance from your Negative Nancy. Negative people like spending time with people who make their negativity feel normal and acceptable. So the longer you let your Negative Nancy be a kill-joy in your life, the more they’ll desire to be in your presence.
– GRACE GRACE GRACE…. At the end of the day, we all have our flaws. Your flaw may not be negativity but I guarantee you, you have one! So when you’re getting fed up with your Negative Nancy, maybe remind yourself that you’re not perfect either!!

Happy Wednesday Friends!

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