Do negative people attract negative energy or attention?

1. 68

   davenmidtownposted 13 years ago

   Inspired by the question is your glass half empty or half full and irked by many attitudes in general, the question or whether or not negative people (people who see the worst or can not promote anything nice to say) attract negative attention?

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      Lisa HWposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      I think, rather than attract negative energy (necessarily), they more "suck the life out of" those around them.  Having said that, I do think people have to be careful about mistaking "being a negative person" from "being someone who never, ever, talks about anything unpleasant."  There's a difference, and sometimes people don't really realize that there's a difference (not saying you don't - only saying a lot of people don't).  (Of course, I'm the type to say, "The glass eight-ounce glass has about four-ounces of water in it.")

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         davenmidtownposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         do you mean pleasant or unpleasant?

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         Xenonlitposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         

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      3. 75

         Castlepalomaposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         How about drink the cup up and refill it again. 
         
         Positive and negative is like front and back, good and bad and etc....,  I most often like middle ground solutions. If people get too negative I get rid of them and if they are too positive,it  may seem too sweet and you can get sick of it.

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      OutWestposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      They attract other negitive people...who else would want to be with them?

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      couturepopcafeposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      daven - what you think about expands so if you only see negative you attract negative.  It's exactly like the glass analogy.  The same situation is viewed differently and therefore creates an environment within the individual to project more of the same and attract, like a magnet, more of the same.

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         Castlepalomaposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         True
         kinda of like cheats and good guys, the more you surround yourself with good guys the better off you will be within your circle, Sometime you can train some of the cheats over into  the good guys. In fact that is a better way to change the world that surround us all

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   knolyourselfposted 13 years ago

   Of course they do. They attract people like themselves. And they do not so much attract negative energy as they create it through negative interpretation.

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      davenmidtownposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      I love the phase negative interpretation.  I think that is a good way of looking at some comments.

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      rebekahELLEposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      I think that's one of the best responses I've read about negativity.

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         davenmidtownposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         rebekahELLE: I have to agree... it really clicked something in my mind when I read that...I think I see these people in a new light... a slightly sadder light....because I can not imagine seeing what is wrong with everything and not noticing what might be right...

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      couturepopcafeposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      I have to agree with this 'interpretation' as well.  It's not about attracting negative people, it's about attracting negativity in general which boils down to interpretation by the individual

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3. 88

   Stacie Lposted 13 years ago

   "Like attracts like" and "birds of a feather flock together'..mentality.
   Negative people attract other negative people...
   positive attract positive..
   and are repelled by the opposite..
   
   negative people do suck the life out of me..and I try to stay clear of them
   
   Sometimes positive people annoy me too..

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4. 74

   Richieb799posted 13 years ago

   How do you know someone is negative, if they are a quiet about it?
   
   I do not know mixing with negative people, or people with a low opinion of themselves, it will rub off on you

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      davenmidtownposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      I don't mind quiet people...

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5. 59

   calpol25posted 13 years ago

   I just like people from all walks of life, negative,  positive, quiet, loud, open, private - as the saying goes it takes all sorts.

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      davenmidtownposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      dame Edna?  little possum!

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         calpol25posted 13 years agoin reply to this

         dame Edna too  

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6. 94

   thoughtholeposted 13 years ago

   Absolutely, yes, like attracts like. A negative person will feel more comfortable with those who share their same disposition. If they do find themselves presented with positive people and situations they will probably choose to notice only things that fit into their negative perception, blocking out the positive, or the potential for positive that surrounds them. This is no theory, I see it in action everyday, its the law of attraction. We really do create our own realities.
   Good news is everyone has the power to change their perception if they are really willing to do so.

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      AshtonFireflyposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      I agree. Well said

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7. 72

   natures47friendposted 13 years ago

   I agree as well. You know I like to be surrounded by positive people and not be dragged down by miserable negative energy-suckers. I lost a few hours in my job by walking out on a really negative, selfish person who consistently ran me down...one day I snapped, even when my boss said sometimes there are types that you have to put up with...and no one else would go to this woman...so I sorted it out...I have been so much relaxed and happier since. Of course, I would not recommend that avenue in a full time permanent office situation as you would get the sack...lol

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      davenmidtownposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      My neighbor is really negative... though I don't think she means to be... but she sees everything that is wrong on an OCD level.  I asked her once if she ever listened to what she was saying... now she tries to include something positive... but for a while she really just dimmed the sunlight.

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         thoughtholeposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         Nice work, davenmidtown,.You presented your neighbor with a chance to be aware of her perception, it is entirely possible that no one has ever given her that opportunity before. Awareness is always the first step, sounds like she has the capacity to accept that there are alternatives.

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            davenmidtownposted 13 years agoin reply to this

            she tries... and that is all I can hope for...

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         Lisa HWposted 12 years agoin reply to this

         The few really (and I mean REALLY) negative people I know have either been most likely suffering from (at least mild) clinical depression; or else they've been people who seem to have grown up believing that being pleased with anything, or enjoying anything, is only for people who "aren't smart enough to realize how bad, or unsatisfactory, everything is".  I knew someone who was a pretty positive person who wouldn't give in to the bleak thinking of his family members.  They acted as if they thought he was "too stupid" to "stop being silly" and "fact reality".    These people would "form their own little "criticizing committee" of everything from every cookie they ever ate to every last person who showed up on television, and everything and anyone in between.      I don't think I ever heard a "isn't-this-a-beautiful-day" from one of them.     (They ALL weren't depressed.    )

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   prettydarkhorseposted 13 years ago

   yes, nice thing you did, keep on smiling and being positive - it will be ""transferred"" to her as well

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9. 82

   carolinemd21posted 13 years ago

   when you are negative you do attract negative people and situations. I totally believe that. It has happened to me many times when I've been negative.

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10. 82

    timorousposted 12 years ago

    Negative thinking is a choice you make. It's actually more work to be negative than to be positive. It's a matter of just letting things be. Letting the past be just that..you can't go back and change it, or regret things, hold grudges, or worry about stuff. Just chill..and live in the moment.

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       Lisa HWposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       I don't disagree in general, but I'd have to say that I'd disagree under certain circumstances (about it taking more work to be negative than to be positive).  There are some times and/or some lives or circumstances when it can be pretty much require a "super-human" effort and/or a whole lot skill at coping to remain positive.  There's something that can be very effortless about just giving in to regrets, accepting the negative/challenging stuff/issues as they are, and wallowing in negativity.  It takes work, skill, and fight (sometimes) to remain positive.  I think a lot of negative people don't have one or more of those three things because, for some reason, they're not interested in developing them in themselves.  I really think the real key is to learn how to manage, make some use of, and generally process (and put in perspective) things like regrets, bad stuff, and worries - and either turn them into something "neutral" (rather than negative) or else let them go (depending on what they are).

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          mega1posted 12 years agoin reply to this

          I see what you're saying and taking it further, I think the really negative people need to just be re-trained to see the positive and the beauty that is there all the time - let it fill up their minds instead of the negative.  In order to do this you need a whole yard of patience and the will to hug them and point them towards the beauty - better if we can start with the children - some adults seem to be lost causes and if you can just avoid them, that will work for you - but for them, it would take a lot of love.  Love IS the answer!  (oh, man, I sound so like a pollyanna I could just - - -)

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11. 62

    Daniel Carterposted 12 years ago

    Negative people produce negative energy. Attract or not, producing it and filling yourself with it is projecting it all around you.

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12. 78

    schoolgirlforrealposted 12 years ago

    Negativity can result from upbringing or personality or depression or all three. It can be over come with effort. Anything can be.
    
    Negativity makes many people who could help you drift away. IMO its a disease.

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13. 78

    mega1posted 12 years ago

    I see what you mean, entirely.  It's not only negative vs. positive, its that we seem to be trained (in all sorts of cultures) from birth to constantly be judging our environment and others in it.  We look at a thing and make an instant assessment and judge -  "I like this.  or I don't like this"  and it goes on and on all day long.  We overdo it, is what I think.  Of course, we have to assess things in order to survive.  But for instance, one day I was driving in the beautiful springtime countryside with a friend who was not only making judgments but had to tell me constantly.  Like "I like this lovely dwarf apple trees in bloom"  but "I don't like what they've done to this hillside - more grapes!"  and so on - like it really mattered whether she liked the landscape or not!!  I let her go on and on and kept trying to think of a way to ask her to stop.  I couldn't so - next time I went to driving alone and had more fun.  Now, see, the thing is - if we can just observe without make a pro or con judgment, life is better, in my opinion.  Or is that a judgment?  Sometimes, people seem more negative because they're always telling us what they don't like - they need more cuddling, is my conclusion.  hugs and kisses! 

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    timorousposted 12 years ago

    You're right mega1. The problem is, we've mostly grown up in a society that makes judgements, comparisons, likes, dislikes. This is merely buying into your thoughts. Nothing that exists has any instrinsic value other than what we put on them. Unfortunately, too many people get caught up in their negative thoughts, not realizing the stress they cause themselves (and others). It's true, for many people this would be a long climb out of the darkness, but not impossible.
    
    For a great many people, the cycle of never being satisfied with anything is never-ending..a better car, a better flat-screen tv, a faster computer, a better spouse. In Buddhism, this is referred to as 'samsara', and is a cycle that needs to be broken if true happiness is to ever be a possibility. One needs to look at things differently, and just let things be as they are..sever those emotional attachments you have to (mostly) inanimate objects.

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    lizy625posted 12 years ago

    kill em with kindness-smiling is contagious!!!!
    negative people attract attention, however you can affect their negativity if you pass on a little kindness, they then choose which direction they will go with it-turn that frown upside down, or not

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    Mighty Momposted 12 years ago

    Misery loves company.
    Especially on the next barstool. Or the office water cooler. Or across the neighbor's fence.
    
    Some people are wired to criticize and complain.
    Depression, anxiety, alcoholism all color your vision of life in shades of black.
    You don't even realize happiness is a choice!
    
    But, rewiring IS possible.
    Serenity also loves -- and thrives on -- having people around.

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