Complaining
One of the many reasons I encourage everyone to have positive role models in their lives is because a role model of mine, from early in my career, helped me to guard against complaining. The statement was simple, “Complaining is contagious.” I was able to observe my role model as he avoided spending time with people who were engaged in complaining. I truly believe that he did not understand the concept of complaining for two reasons.
– One reason: He only saw the best in others.
– Second reason: If a situation impacted him he found a way to make it better.
Does this mean I never complain? I’m sure my wife would confirm that I do sometimes complain. We all can understand that complaining does little, if any good to improve the situation. We can also understand that the phrase “complaining is contagious” means those who complain always seek out others to complain with them. If we are not careful, we can become involved. In the end, and if left unchecked, complaining will have a negative impact on our personal goals as well as the group’s goals.