Negativity is a poison that can ruin a person and keep you from meeting your career goals. Use these 5 tips to overcome negativity.

1. Jump off the Bandwagon: That crowd at the water cooler or huddled around the coffee machine can be worse than a bully in the school yard. It just takes one negative big mouth to bring down an entire team. Most people find it easier to jump on the bandwagon than they do to say “Stop the ride, I want off”. When you are faced with a negative person determined to bring the rest of the group down with them use the same approach you would to bullying: walk away. Getting caught up in negative gossip, boss bashing and company poo pooing will do nothing but bring you down and make you look bad in the eyes of the people who can help you move forward.

 

2. Shake off the Nay Sayers: Most life coaches would agree that having negative people in your life is ill advised. Sometimes it takes a while to catch on that someone is a real downer. They might seem funny or insightful at first. However if you find you are with someone who is always complaining and can never seem to find anything good to say it is in your best interest to slowly weed them out of your life.

 

3. Remain Positive: You might feel like some kind of brown noser or teacher’s pet trying to remain positive when everyone else around you is dissing the boss, but the truth is the only way to over come negativity is to stay positive. Try to offer positive comments in the midst of disdain. You will feel better and you might also help others get out of their blue funk.

 

4. Stay Focused: Being able to remain focused on your goals is another way to overcome negativity. Knowing why you are doing something and what you need to do to meet your goals will help you ignore the negativity of those around you.

 

5. Get Constructive: Negative thoughts are destructive and can undermine your goals. You need constructive thoughts to help build you up and give you confidence. As well constructive criticism might be misconstrued as negativity when in fact it is designed to improve your performance. Be open to those who might be offering sound advice and instead of hearing you aren’t good enough, hear what will make you better.

 

Overcoming negativity will help you stay motivated and find success.

Doug Dvorak is a motivational speaker and specialist available for conferences, events and seminars.