Saying something: Part Two - No complaints

I've listened to a lot of people in my life and have benefitted from hearing and understanding many of them. Listening is an excellent skill, one learns more listening than talking. I had an idea to do a little series of posts about things I've heard people say and which I've taken away, thought over and applied to my life. I'll keep these posts quite short but hope someone reads something they can fit into their own life. Here goes.

Stop complaining, especially about things you can't control

We all do it, complain, however it's not our best use of time, thought, emotion and effort; it's ineffective and wasteful and holds people back from progressing forward. It's easy to do though, much easier than taking ownership and responsibility, and so we do it in the hope that...in the hope that...well, I don't really know what people hope to gain from it other than some strange and warped sense of satisfaction perhaps.

I was once told that it's more productive to control the controllable things and not worry about those outside of our control; sound advice from someone whose words I valued greatly and words I have never forgotten. It makes perfect sense and I've tried to do it as much as possible although I've failed at it as well of course. It helps me to find better solutions and ways forward rather than hold me back or keep me in place and it eliminates negativity, procrastination and thoughts of helplessness. Basically, it focuses thought and energy and it's those things that help a person find a more effective life in the present and future.