So my original plan for this blog was to go complaint free for a whole week and see how it impacted aspects of my life. HA yeah, I don’t know if you guys know this or not, but that is REALLY hard. My high hopes of becoming an extreme optimist that never says anything negative for at least a whole week and then miraculously loving it and it changing my life forever quickly went down hill as soon as I walked outside in the rain. “Ugh, it’s so cold out here, isn’t it supposed to be spring? I hate the rain.” Bam, one second, and it’s done, my first complaint of the week was said. No, Lexi, no more. “Wow, I do not want to go to class today, it is so boring.” Another. I think you can tell where this is going.
I had to revise my plan. It was nearly impossible to stop my complaints, and even if I could somehow filter out my negative comments, they still were running through my head, which seemed to be just as toxic. Instead, I decided to pay more attention to my complaints and really think about what it was that I was saying and if they were necessary.
One of the first things I noticed about complaints is, whether they were coming from my mouth or someone I was talking to’s mouth, they were often used as a filler in a conversation. It was as if someone didn’t know what to say, so they decided to just complain about something to keep conversation going. Now I am not a fan of awkward silences either, but aren’t there better ways to keep a conversation going? We could be complimenting someone or asking questions instead. I noticed that a complaint is the worst to say during a conversation because it brings up more complaints, and then the whole mood is negative.
Another thing I noticed about my complaining habits was that they were so involuntary and negative about myself. “My hair looks bad.” “My face is breaking out.” “I look fat in these pants.” I would never want someone to say this about me, so why would I say them about me? I was putting myself down, and most of the time I wasn’t even looking at myself, just what I assumed was wrong with me. Once again, negativity at its best, and it was definitely unnecessary.
After taking the week to evaluate my complaints, I started noticing that my complaints declined. I slowly decreased the amount of complaints I said each day, and I noticed my mood beginning to change. I feel so positive these days, almost as if I am more confident and have found some inner peace. I have noticed myself slowly stopping the comparisons I would often make about myself with other people and have had better, more genuine conversations with the people I care about.
Now, I didn’t quite make it to complete “complaint-free” for a whole week, some are just too easy to slip out, but I have put some thought into what it is that actually comes out of my mouth. I’m really liking the whole positivity movement that’s going on in my life right now.
Remember, positive thoughts lead to positive results! Hope you all can learn a little something from my complain less mindset.