If you display these 15 behaviors, you’re giving people negative vibes

Some people know they’re negative, but most people don’t have a clue.

Are you one of these people?

It’s possible that you’re doing things that rub people the wrong way or sap their positive energy. It’s also possible that you’re not even doing anything actively, but you just seem to give off a negative feeling.

Whether it’s because of your actions or no fault of your own, you might actually be bringing the people around you down and sucking the life out of the party or the party out of life.

I hate to tell you, but if you display these 15 behaviors, you’re giving people negative vibes. But don’t worry – all’s not lost!

Realizing you’re behaving this way and the effect it’s having on others can help you make changes in your life.

1) Complaining

Griping about anything and everything is such a drag, man.

We all know that sometimes things won’t go your way, and you won’t get what you’re looking for.

This is true for everyone, not just you.

But if you’re the kind of person who’s a habitual complainer, it makes it sound all about you and how let down by the world you are.

Complaining is an action that stems from an attitude. If you can change your attitude to be more accepting, it will be easy to complain a whole lot less.

2) Sulking

Sulking is what petulant kids do when they don’t get their way.

This isn’t the sort of behavior you’d expect from a grown-ass adult!

When you sulk, you’re really wallowing in self-pity and fixating on your own disappointment. I have a friend who does this often, and it’s really hard to handle.

It’s also, frankly, quite annoying.

People around him try to cheer him up and make him feel better, but it rarely works, so everyone ends up with their energy sapped and feeling anything but positive.

3) Frowning

I know that some people have a “resting bitch face.”

It’s not their fault because they’re not actively frowning – their facial features just make it seem that way.

And yet, even this can send out negative vibes. 

Want a cheap and easy trick in case you seem to be a frowner?

Spend time looking at pictures of people smiling. According to this study, this will encourage you to copy their smile and that actually even makes you feel happier!

4) Ignoring people

Ever give anyone the silent treatment?

Maybe you just don’t really like a person, so avoid talking to them.

Either way, we all know that this is a tactic that doesn’t make anyone happier – not you or the person you’re ignoring.

It can make that person feel completely devalued while you actually get extra stress in your life because you have to go out of your way to “ignore” them.

No one wins… unless the prize is negative vibes.

5) Being sarcastic

Sarcasm can be funny, but it has to be used in the right way and within the right context.

Sometimes, though, it’s a really negative behavior.

With sarcasm, you essentially negate what you say or do, so it definitely holds some negative energy. And since it’s usually used to mock or convey contempt, it rarely ends up making anyone feel good – not even you.

6) Blaming others

When something goes wrong, and it’s someone else’s fault, do they really need your finger pointing at them to make them feel any worse?

What about blaming other people when you’re really the one who has done the wrong thing?

Yes, it’s important for people to take responsibility for their own actions, but that’s not what blaming them is.

That’s you assigning fault to them rather than them doing this independently. Not very positive, right?

Told you so!

7) Bragging

Who doesn’t like a braggart?

Boy, doesn’t it feel great when someone is telling you how much better they are and how much more they have than you?

No?

Hmm, well, maybe people don’t like to hear that sort of thing for you, either.

Being proud of yourself and your accomplishments is one thing, but spouting off about it to people who are less successful or well-off isn’t going to make anyone feel nice.

8) Holding overly high expectations

When you expect everything to be perfect, you’re going to be constantly disappointed.

Perfection doesn’t exist, and near-perfection is rare.

So you’re basically setting yourself up to fail.

You’re probably also putting undue pressure on the people around you and they’re going to feel like they’re letting you down constantly.

9) Being bossy

Ordering people around makes them uncomfortable and feel under-appreciated.

If you feel the need to bark orders all the time, you’re basically telling people you don’t have any faith in their abilities.

That’s not a very positive feeling, is it?

Try just once to back off and see how people do without you breathing down their necks.

You may be pleasantly surprised.

10) Saying things suck

What’s more negative than disliking everything?

“I don’t like that.” “That sucks.” “This is terrible.”

Look, we all have preferences, and no one likes everything. That’s good because it gives life contrast.

But there’s a certain amount of emotional maturity necessary to help you know when you should express your distaste and when to keep quiet.

If you’re somebody who always says things suck, try not to say anything at all every second time you feel like making a statement. You’ll instantly cut down on the negative vibes you’re sending out.

11) Worrying

My grandfather was a lovely man, but he did have one serious affliction – he was a worry-wart.

I think a big part of it was because he lived on his own for decades, so there wasn’t always someone around to talk him down or suggest that he was getting carried away.

I remember he’d call my mother out of the blue at any time of day or night to ask her about something he was worrying about in his life or in ours.

He literally called once at 2:00 a.m. to ask if she’d unplugged her iron for no apparent reason.

This kind of worry can be really infectious. It makes the people around you worry, too, when before they were perfectly at peace.

12) Stressing

I’ve got a friend who’s just one big stress ball.

He’s always sweating furiously and looking like he hasn’t sat down in a week.

You know people who are unflappable?

He’s flappable.

The funny thing is that I know a lot about his work and family life, and I can’t see any real reason why he should be so stressed out all the time.

But he is, and it makes everyone around him stressed out, too.

You just feel like you’re under pressure because he is!

13) Acting nervous

Nervous energy can really be a downer.

I once had to write an exam sitting in a row of seats with someone who was clearly nervous.

He was a leg-shaker, and for an hour and a half, he made the whole row quiver and shake repeatedly. 

It was one of those situations where every time I was about to say something, he’d stop. But a few minutes later, it was shaky-shake-shake all over again.

I don’t think I’ve ever done worse on a test in my life!

14) Being jealous

When other people do well and achieve the things they’re aiming for, do you feel happy for them?

Or do you feel something different – envy, resentment, even anger?

If this is how you feel, you’re certainly not bringing happy, positive, supportive energy into the mix, are you?

Maybe you wanted that promotion, or you wish you were getting married.

But just because you didn’t get what you wanted doesn’t mean you should begrudge other people’s happiness.

15) Being pessimistic

What’s the difference between a pessimist and a realist?

I don’t want to use any played-out water glass analogies here, so I’ll keep it literal.

A realist sees things as they are without making value judgments. 

A pessimist, on the other hand, sees things as they are and makes negative judgments about them. Either that, or they expect negative things to happen.

In both of these cases, being a pessimist really brings other people down. 

If you’re behaving this way, it’s probably because you’ve had negative experiences in the past that are coloring the present and the future for you.

The good news, though, is that if you can address these core issues, you can begin to change your negative outlook to one that’s more positive.

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but if you display these 15 behaviors, you’re giving people negative vibes.

It may be because of something you’re doing or something you’re not doing, but the effect is the same.

But there’s still time to change.

Once you recognize that your behavior is making others feel bad, you can modify your behavior and embrace more positivity in your life.