Negative emotions are a part of who we are. While some are embedded in our nature, others come as a result of nurture. Blaming our parents or society won’t get us anywhere. On the other hand, swallowing these feelings and not giving them the respect they deserve can cause us a lot of problems.
Emotions can hold so much power over us that they can even drastically affect our private lives and make us destroy our career. In order to help you identify the emotions that can kill your career, we have put together list of the five most common ones.
We will also provide you with some tips and how-tos, so that you can work towards finding a positive resolution.
Fear
The workplace is one of those places that can cause a person to fear so many things. You name it: failure, embarrassment, underperformance, rejection, confrontation and so on. It seems that our workplace has the power to take our anxiety and give it a name.
When you give in to you fear, you won’t be able to give your best at work and, in the end, the fear may cause you to either get fired or quit your job. No matter how rewarding this idea may seem to you, you have to fight it and give your best not to give in.
The main symptom of fear is not being able to think clearly. It is an overwhelming emotion that floods our brains with panicky thoughts. The first step to fight this terrible feeling is to take a time out and get a breather. You should take a few days off from work and use the free time to try and help yourself.
Experts advise that you start doing the small things that help you calm down: walk in nature, cook a healthy meal, talk with your friends. If your anxiety is getting the best of you, you should consider asking a professional for help. Cognitive behavioral therapy provides great results with people who experience fear and anxiety.
Indignation
You should know that we all expect fair treatment and we all feel annoyed or angry when we don’t get it. But if you find yourself in constant indignation, it may be a sign that you have to work on it. If you don’t, there is a great chance that you will grow into this easily annoyed person, resenting everyone around them. And this person is very likely to kill their own career.
Indignation plays a really important role in the lives of people who experience it – it helps them feel some sort of superiority. People with low self-esteem, those who are frustrated with where they are in life, are more susceptible to indignation.
Fortunately, there is help. You can start by answering few simple questions. First, how much energy and time have you invested in being upset in your life? The second, what could you have done with that time and energy instead? And lastly, what did you gain from being upset?
Furthermore, you can start fighting indignation by deciding how to react to other people’s actions instead of jumping into an automatic indignant response.
Shame
We all feel shame. People just don’t talk about it, because, you know, they are even ashamed of feeling shame as adults. The main misconception here is that this emotion is reserved for children only. In any case, it can be very paralyzing and so powerful that it can completely shape a person’s life.
Since there is a complex mechanism behind this emotion which tracks back to our childhood, you should consider revisiting your childhood. This trip will help you understand that it is not your fault that you feel like you do.
But it is your responsibility to change it. Ideally, you want to pinpoint the exact origin of your shame. This will help you understand how you work in situations that trigger your shame. This is the best start to developing healthier responses.
Anger
Anger is an emotion that can affect not only your career, but your health too. It is one of our primary responses and it has helped us come through the harshest events during our evolution. Its primary purpose was to put us in survival mode.
From a psychological perspective, the purpose of anger is still the same, albeit with a slight upgrade. Today it is a “masking” emotion as well, because it helps us conceal other emotions that can’t be process at times for whatever reason.
Since its pattern shapes both the physical and psychological plane, a person has to steadily learn how to master anger. Most of the techniques of anger management start with learning to be more aware. This is something you should start practicing first.
Take a pause when you feel that well-known emotion and look into yourself. What happened? How do you feel? Describe it in great detail. What are your options?
Anxiety
Some refer to anxiety as the emotion of the new age. Many people experience it on daily basis and at some points it can be overwhelming and impossible to cope with.
There are countless examples of how anxiety caused people to kill their career, especially the chronic type. It has the power to trick people into thinking differently about themselves, and to interpret the outside world and circumstances in a completely wrong way, and even alters our thought patterns.
And this is exactly where you should start. Do your best to stay active and busy in order to get a break from your thoughts. This will give you the mental and physical strength to face your anxiety and reclaim your thoughts for yourself.
In the meantime, learn one of the relaxation techniques which you can use when you feel the anxiety attack kicking in. The more you are used to your anxiety symptoms, the less likely they will trigger anxiety.
These are the five emotions that can kill your career. We hope that you will find some of the advice useful and that you will be able to successfully control them. In any case, if you see that you are losing the fight against any of these, don’t be afraid to ask a professional for help.
