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12 characteristics and habits of negative people

12 characteristics and habits of negative people

April 10, 2024

There are many types of individuals, and each one with its virtues and its defects. Undoubtedly, one of the biggest defects that a human being can have is a negative attitude towards life, because we all know that day to day is not always a paradise, and the way we interpret and face the events that happen to us influences our happiness and our ability to solve problems.

While there are optimistic people, which everyone wants to have by their side, there are also negative people, who see everything black . In this article we will talk about the latter.

Positive mentality versus negative mentality

Obviously, our happiness does not depend only on our attitude, but it is always better to face problems with a positive mentality than with a negative mentality. And there are many reasons why we should be grateful to be able to enjoy this life, so it is always better to face the days with a good face, regardless of the time you do or how the day presents itself.


The positive mentality increases emotional and psychological well-being, and also the physical : Studies claim that people with positive minds suffer less from heart disease. Therefore, it is always better to be positive than negative, and if you adopt this mentality, the people you have around you will thank you.

Characteristics of negative people

If you want to know how negative people are, in the following lines you will find a list with the characteristics that these individuals present s .

1. Always complain

Negative people are pessimistic people and, therefore, see the glass half empty instead of half full . They are always protesting and, instead of taking action, they are left complaining about what happened. Complaints are always directed outward (other people, situations, etc.), so they avoid having to reflect on what they may have done wrong. This is difficult to improve.


2. Renounce the first change

If something characterizes negative people is that they rarely achieve their goals because they always leave as soon as things get complicated. This happens because they have low self-confidence, that is, they do not believe in their abilities to overcome adversity. Self-confidence is not the same as self-esteem, although they also tend to have low self-esteem .

  • If you want to know what self-confidence is, you can do it in our article: "Albert Bandura's Self-efficacy: do you believe in yourself?"

3. They take things too much to heart

This kind of people take everything too much to heart, as something personal , even those situations that can not change. And since they have low self-esteem, that is, they value themselves negatively, everything affects them.

4. They do not live in the present

They are people who do not live in the present because they are afraid to find themselves . Negative people prefer to live in unrealistic expectations and regretting the past than in what really matters, which is being in the here and now.


5. Focus on your weaknesses

Another characteristic of this type of individuals is that, when assessed negatively, they tend to focus on their defects instead of their virtues. This is a wrong way of thinking that paralyzes them and does not allow them to look to the future with optimism .

6. They stay in the comfort zone

Focusing on the weaknesses causes the person not to have enough confidence to move forward, and remains anchored in the comfort zone, because it feels safe there . The comfort zone may seem like a nice place, but in the long run it does not allow the individual to grow as a person and be happy.

  • Related article: "How to get out of your comfort zone? 7 keys to achieve it "

7. They worry too much about what others think of them

We all want to like others, because we are social beings. But these kinds of people worry too much about what others think of them . As their happiness depends on external factors, they are people who are always worried and do not have the inner peace necessary to be happy. One must work on his own self-knowledge, in finding his own desires and feeling good about himself so as not to suffer for the valuation of others.

8. They do not control their life

And since they have not achieved inner peace or have a strong personality, they do not control their lives . When you depend on external rather than internal factors to be happy, you do not know what you want, you do not know yourself, you do not fight for your dreams. On the contrary, you let yourself be influenced by what others think.

9. They do not forgive and they hold a grudge

They tend to be people who do not forget the past, largely because they do not forgive and always have a big grudge . This does not allow them to live in the present, connected with themselves.Forgiveness and acceptance are healing attitudes that close past hurts.

10. Blame others instead of self-criticism

When one does not forgive or accept, it is usually because he has difficulty facing reality. These types of individuals do not self-criticize and, therefore, prefer to blame others for their failures. To change and learn from the past, it is necessary to see things objectively and extract the positive part from the not very pleasant situations .

11. Do not see in failures opportunities to grow

And if negative people blame others and do not self-criticize, it is very difficult for them to learn from situations . These individuals usually stay stuck in failures, without detachment or learning from them. While a positive person learns from the bad things that happen to him in the life, the negative people stay removing the wound during long time. Something that does not allow to advance.

12. They like the word "but"

Being people with self-confidence and low self-esteem tend to see the future as confusing. They may have high expectations, but when it comes to the truth, the "buts" always appear . It is logical considering that they focus on weaknesses rather than virtues. Their great defect is not trusting themselves and seeing life in a negative way.

And how are optimistic people?

As you see, the negative mentality does not benefit at all to the individual who thinks in this way. It is much better to have an optimistic mentality, to be able to face the difficulties with hope believing in the possibilities of oneself. Thinking positive can make a difference when you want to achieve your dreams .

  • But, how are the optimists? In our article: "11 characteristics of optimistic people" you can discover it

12 Bad Personality Traits That Can Actually Be Good (April 2024).


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