Complainers gonna complain.

It sort of baffles me at times just how plague-like moods and attitudes can be; contagious and grisly. So many of us are easily influenced by what surrounds us. It seems like plain sailing for someone to just storm into your day with a chip on their shoulder, maybe even a diatribe to spew that is completely irrelevant to you, and ruin your ease and complacency - sometimes for the entire day.

Over the last year or so, I've made myself more aware of this and how it affects me and my life because, sadly, I've spent a lot of my life trying to make everyone happy AKA setting myself up for failure. I was always easily influenced by the tone and aura lingering in the air resulting in me feeling drained and, to be honest, brain dead at times. All carp and no cheer make Dana a stolid girl.

I read an interesting article about this today based on a book by serial entrepreneur and author Trevor Blake. It's called Three Simple Steps: A Map to Success in Business and Life.

Taken from the article:

In the book, he describes how neuroscientists have learned to measure brain activity when faced with various stimuli, including a long gripe session.
"The brain works more like a muscle than we thought," Blake says. "So if you're pinned in a corner for too long listening to someone being negative, you're more likely to behave that way as well."
Even worse, being exposed to too much complaining can actually make you dumb. Research shows that exposure to 30 minutes or more of negativity--including viewing such material on TV--actually peels away neurons in the brain's hippocampus. "That's the part of your brain you need for problem solving," he says. "Basically, it turns your brain to mush."

"Ah," I thought to myself. "This explains so much."

I'm not calling myself dumb, but I will admit that there have been times where, after a long day at work of listening to someone (or several) gripe, I felt like all of teh stupidz. Like my brain was melting into a puddle of sludge, gasping in desperation for any last hope for something of substance. Somebody, anybody; something, anything...stimulate my brain. I'm begging you.

I'm glad this is a universal thing, not a Dana thing.

My solution? I strive to be a positive influence. Maybe in someone's day, maybe even someone's life. Even with strangers, I do my best to smile and be pleasant no matter what. I'm not perfect at this, but I've made it my daily mission. I hold doors for people. I say "Excuse me" if I want to get by, and I crack (usually terrible) jokes or giggle openly if something awkward happens in public. It can create a nice cycle of positive energy. I mean, someone has to start it and I sometimes feel as though we live in a world where people forget to or neglect to. The majority are too rushed and caught up in the go-go-go mentality.

I don't know. I'm definitely not trying to save the world, just my sanity and inner peace. If I can control the aura in my surroundings, I'm going to.

Because in the end, no matter what you do...