Life is too short to surround yourself with negativity.
We have all heard this advice before, but sometimes putting it into practice can be challenging, especially when it involves distancing yourself from people you care about.
Give people grace, but don’t turn your personal space into a stage for unnecessary drama.
There is only so much you can do for a person.
However, there are many times when it becomes necessary to prioritize your own well-being and growth.
And it is at this time you take up your scissors and cut off people who are not concerned with your well-being.
People who only find happiness in your downfall.
When you cut off toxicity and negativity from your life, you are not just preserving yourself.
You are also creating an atmosphere that allows for positivity, growth, and fulfillment. Here are some brutally honest reasons why you should consider cutting some people out of your life.
7 Brutally Honest Reasons Why You Should Cut People Out of Your Life
1. Constant Negativity
There is this thing with negativity.
It spreads faster than a virus.
It is like a dark cloud on a rainy day: it starts as a small ball in one spot and then spreads rapidly until everywhere is dark.
That’s how negativity works.
You won’t even blink before you realize that you, too, are becoming a negative person just because you let a little bit of negativity into your space.
So when someone who is pessimistic and always complaining comes your way, do your best to influence them with your positive energy and vibes.
But don’t try for too long.
No matter how vibrant and happy you are, spending a lot of time with bad energy will drain your energy and affect your mental health.
So, if your trials are not yielding results, please let them go.
If you become negative, you will not be able to help the other person.
Guard your heart.
2. Toxic Relationships
Just like negative energy, toxic relationships are another thing that should not be found around you.
How do you know you’re in a toxic relationship?
The relationship stands on one leg.
Have you seen a two-legged table standing on one leg before?
You can’t put anything on it because there is no balance.
And it doesn’t stand properly.
So, in your toxic relationship, you keep giving and giving and are not receiving anything in return.
When water is continually poured out from a container and it is not refilled, the container will soon become drained out.
That is what you do to yourself when you are in a relationship where you keep giving and are not receiving.
You will soon become dried out.
Healthy relationships are built on mutual respect, support, and reciprocity.
If this is not the situation in your relationship, you do not need to be there.
Save yourself from unnecessary stress and be separated.
3. People Who Undermine Your Goals
Your goals are for you to achieve, and not be swept into the trash can.
Before you set a goal for yourself, there’s something you are seeking to achieve.
And that thing must be pretty important to you for you to want it.
So, the fastest way to achieve your goals is to surround yourself with supportive people who will encourage you throughout the process.
They understand your needs and validate them.
And they believe in you and in your ability to reach your goals.
And if you really want to achieve your goals, you should distance yourself from people who are standing below you to pull you down.
They do this by continuously criticizing you, your goals, and your strategies for achieving your set goals.
These people can prevent you from achieving your goals.
Because the more you are exposed to discouragement, the more discouraged you’ll be on your path to achieving your goals.
4. Disrespectful People
Respect is not gender restricted.
When someone respects you, they are showing you that they recognize your humanity and your value.
With this, you should know that respect is not age-restricted either.
It is the foundation of every healthy relationship – whether romantic, platonic, or professional.
There must be mutual respect.
If someone is always disrespecting your boundaries, feelings, or values, it’s a clear indication that they do not value you as a person.
You should not allow them in your space or tolerate their actions.
When you tolerate one person’s disrespect, another person takes a cue from there to also disrespect you.
But if you address disrespect as it comes, other people around you will understand that you do not tolerate it and uphold your values.
Cutting disrespectful people out of your life is also a way to reclaim your self-respect.
5. People Who Do Not Prioritize Your Happiness
There is a content creator I follow on social media.
I like to watch her and her family’s videos because they bring me joy and good energy.
One time, one of her followers left a very snide and evil comment on the post, telling her that she doesn’t deserve to be happy and she does not deserve to go on vacation and get all the good things she gets.
She ended the comment by saying that she did not deserve anything.
You can imagine that kind of hate from someone you don’t even know.
And to think that this content creator is someone who is dealing with some mental health challenges.
Everyone just needs to protect themselves from social media.
Your happiness should never be compromised for the sake of maintaining a relationship.
You shouldn’t even be in a relationship with someone who doesn’t want you to be happy.
You’ll be setting yourself up for terrible experiences.
Instead, surround yourself with people who have positive energy and people who contribute to your overall happiness and well-being.
6. People Who Block Your Progress
There’s something called “asukpak ebai” in my native language.
It is a word that is used to describe people who like to block other people’s progress.
We say it in a full sentence that interprets: “Move forward so that other people can also go. Move away from the road so that another person can go forward. You refuse.”
So you don’t want to make progress, and you also don’t want to see another person make progress.
It is a very bad character.
One that you should not allow in your space.
If you find someone in your life with this character, please let them go immediately.
You need to move forward and there is no time to let anything hold you back.
7. People Who Are Not Comfortable With Change
As you grow in life, you experience changes in so many areas of your life.
Change is inevitable.
If you are living your life year after year without any tangible changes or progress, you might need to check yourself for stagnancy.
One of the ways of knowing that you are growing is by the changes in your life.
The fact that you are able to step out of your comfort zone and make difficult decisions that are of benefit to you.
What this means is that the older you get, the more you have to let go of people who are not beneficial to you.
Cutting off toxic people may be uncomfortable initially, but it gives you room to groom new, healthier relationships.
When you cut people out of your life, you are not being heartless or cold; you are prioritizing your own happiness, well-being, and personal growth.
If you are not one who causes the downfall of another person, you do not need people around you who are looking for your downfall.
Surround yourself with people who uplift and inspire you, and let go of those who drain your energy and bring negativity into your life.
Remember, you have the power to choose who you allow into your life and how they impact your happiness.
So, choose wisely.
Yele