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10 Ways To Prevent People From Having Power Over You

You give someone power over your thoughts, feelings, and behavior by allowing them to have a negative effect on you.

Sometimes, it’s subtle. It is possible to change how you interact with people in order to please them. However, this will not have a significant impact on your daily life.

Sometimes, harsh criticisms from a loved-one can seriously impact your well-being.

Either way, giving up control of your mind can cause you to lose the mental power you need to succeed. Here are 10 ways you can stop giving power to others.

1. Set healthy limits

No matter if your coworker is a waste of time telling you how unhappy they are at work or your friend asking for money, there will be people who will steal your time, money and space. It is important to establish healthy boundaries for yourself.

Don’t be afraid to say no and demand what you want. If someone violates your boundaries, you must take clear and unambiguous action.

2. Accept responsibility for your emotions

You shouldn’t feel guilty for feeling bad about yourself or blame others. You are responsible for your feelings.

Take positive action if someone is negatively affecting your emotions. You can change the circumstances or your response to them. You might decide to leave the situation and move on. You might decide to take deep breaths and continue the difficult conversation.

3. Other people should be held responsible for their emotions

However, you shouldn’t be responsible for others’ emotions. You can’t make everybody happy and you can’t make them mad.

It is important to be aware how your actions impact others but it is not your responsibility to control their feelings.

4. Recognize your options

If you feel like you need to do something, you can change your language. You don’t need to go to the grocery store. You don’t even have to take your dog to the vet. These are all options.

There are many options, including working and paying bills. There are consequences for not doing so, but knowing that you have the right to make decisions about your life gives you the ability to take control of it.

5. Be true to your values

When you know your values, you will be less inclined to follow the crowd and less concerned about others’ opinions. You can identify the most important things to you and then live according to them. This doesn’t matter if you work hard, value your time, have hobbies or are religious. You should invest your time and energy in what is important to you. You will feel less critical of the opinions and priorities of others if you are confident.

6. Let go and forgive.

Grudges can negatively impact your life and the lives of others. Do not waste your time or energy trying to make someone feel guilty.

Recognize that forgiveness does not mean that someone is wrong. It doesn’t mean that you must associate with them. Forgiveness may be about letting go anger and allowing yourself to focus on more important things.

7. Don’t try to prove people wrong

For a time, you may feel empowered when you tell someone “I’m going” However, proving people wrong gives you power.

Focus on the things that are important to you. Surprises along the way are a bonus, not the main goal.

8. Do not let others’ opinions affect your self-esteem

If you depend on others to affirm your worthiness, they will always be the ones who have power over you. Do not let anyone affect your self-esteem.

You will feel more confident if you do the things that make your self-esteem rise (like volunteering at the gym or helping others).

9. Do not waste your energy complaining

You give people more space in your life if you spend more time complaining about them. Before you start ranting about your boss or your sister-in law for 20 minutes, consider the fact that they will consume more of your time and energy than you would spend on other things. You can choose to invest your energy and time in more worthwhile and positive activities.

10. Don’t think about negative interactions with other people

People have power when they can make you laugh and redo conversations. It is okay to make mistakes and learn from them, but don’t let the negative things someone has said get in the way of your future plans.

If these thoughts begin to form in your head, think of something else. No matter if you need to talk to someone about a different topic or engage in some sort of physical activity, don’t let the people who are dragging you down distract you.

ABOUT

Hello, I’m Rachel Collins. Until recently, I ran my own patchwork quilt business. Having retired from that I have turned my e-commerce site into this blog where I discuss business, home and garden and lifestyle topics for you to enjoy...

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