4 signs that you are a pessimist and need to look away from all that negativity

Ever met someone who says, “Why do bad things happen to me always?” at the slightest inconvenience? From dropping a pen to getting rejected at a job interview, we all have bad days. But, pessimism is characterised by the thought process that only bad things happen. A pessimist lives with the expectation that every effort will be met with failure and every outcome will be against them. This point-of-view is extremely negative and will eventually pull you down.

Here are four signs of pessimism to look out for. And if you’ve been thinking this way, you need to look away from the negativity:

1. You avoid doing things you want to do

We all hate failing, don’t we? The truth is that each situation has only two outcomes: success and failure. The odds are fifty-fifty. However, those who are pessimistic always end up focusing on the fact that they might end up failing even before they pursue something they’ve always wanted to. Needless to say, this can really affect one’s life. If this is the attitude you have, it will only end up in you building a life you don’t truly want to live and cause severe frustration. The consequences will be such that your pessimism will get exacerbated. Whenever the fear of failure stops you from pursuing your dreams, try to remind yourself that it only takes a moment of courage to lay the foundation to the life you want to live.

2. You resist change

They say change is the only constant in life. From our professional life to our personal relationships, we keep experiencing changes. It is how we deal with change that builds resilience. It is important to not only accept change but also seek it out because when we’re changing, we’re growing. Staying in one single phase doesn’t contribute to our personality development and stops us from discovering our full potential. Change is resisted by most people who have a pessimistic outlook because instead of looking at all the positive effects it can have, they end up thinking about all the problems that can be caused due to it.

3. You focus on the problem instead of the solution

Pessimistic people end up focusing on the negative aspect of any situation. Hence, they often end up spending too much time and energy on thinking about the problem instead of solutions. This erodes their ability to make well-thought-of decisions which can make their issues worse. In addition, it might lead to procrastination delaying taking any action at all. We all have problems and it is only us who can take certain measures to fix them. We need to be able to concentrate on finding a solution which is able to mitigate our problem in the best way possible. Focusing solely on the issue will only lead to feelings of worry and reduce our capability to act.

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4. You are quick to indulge in negative self-talk

We all indulge in self-talk. It is important to do so as well because it helps us analyse our own life, problems, plan ahead and keep a check on our emotions. The thing with pessimism is that one tends to give in to negativity which starts reflecting in self-talk as well. Instead of concentrating on their strengths and ambitions, pessimists end up concentrating on their weaknesses.

This leads to negative self-talk which can be extremely harmful to one’s mental health. John Milton, in his magnum opus a, wrote that ‘the mind is its own place.’ If you think negatively and indulge in negative self-talk, it will only cause you to feel negative and this will reflect in your life. You are your biggest cheerleader and need to believe in yourself.

So, ladies, steer clear of this way of thinking and take active steps to look at the positive side of things!