Back when I was working in Sydney, I had a work colleague point out something interesting to me.
At the time my best friend worked in the same company. My co-worker commented that when my best friend walked in the front door she always knew how I would feel when she walked out.
If my girlfriend walked in happy, I would be happy. If she walked in miserable, I would be miserable as well, despite how happy I may have been with my own life only minutes before.
Without realizing I was taking on my best friend’s moods and emotions.
That day was a turning point for me.
To be honest, at first, I denied it. In my eyes, I was simply being empathetic, which is a quality I admire and respect in people. I felt like I was being supportive.
Yet the more I thought about it and paid careful attention to my behavior, I realized that my work colleague had a valid point,
It wasn’t an overnight transformation. It was something I had to work on.
Obviously, some problems are more heartbreaking and scary than others. If for example, a loved one tells you they’ve just found out they have cancer, naturally, you are going to be shocked and extremely upset. After hearing such horrific news your mood is going to be affected. That’s perfectly normal.
But everyday circumstances are a different matter.
Disclaimer – This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links. Any compensation I receive does not affect the price you pay.
Here are my personal tips for supporting people without taking on their moods and emotions.
Understand it’s okay to be empathetic
Empathy is a wonderful thing. Don’t be afraid of it, embrace it.
Empathy helps you to be supportive and compassionate.
One important thing to remember with empathy is that it’s not about how you would feel in the other person’s situation. To be truly empathetic, you need to consider how someone feels in their situation (taking into consideration their personality, life experiences, and feelings), not how you would feel with that situation.
The good news is you can still be empathetic, supportive, and caring without taking on someone else’s moods and problems.
Related posts –
- 7 Signs You Are Taking on Other People’s Problems
- 20 Ways to Show Genuine Interest in Other People’s Live
- Want to Have Better Conversations? Stop Doing This One Thing
- How to Communicate with People When They Are Feeling Vulnerable
Protect your own happiness
You have to cherish your own happiness. Sometimes you need to protect it fiercely.
No matter what is happening in the world or in someone else’s life you have a right to your own happiness. You have the right to your own feelings, emotions, and particularly joys.
Related post – 20 Questions to Reflect on Your Joy and Happiness For the Year
Changing your mood won’t help the other person
When my friend walked in the room miserable, my becoming miserable didn’t help her in any way.
It didn’t fix or change her problems – no surprise there! If anything it just made the two of us miserable and more likely to think negatively about other situations.
Constantly being in a negative state of mind will make you more vulnerable to adopting a victim’s mentality.
Let go of what is out of your control
Make peace with what you can and can’t control. You can’t control other people’s partners, families, or bosses. You can’t control the actions of other people.
You can only be responsible for your own feelings and actions.
Excellent books by vulnerability expert Brene Brown on letting go and being vulnerable –
- The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You Are Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are by Brene Brown
- Daring Greatly: How the Courage to be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead by Brene Brown
- Rising Strong: How the Ability to Reset Transforms the Way We Live, Love Parent, and Lead by Brene Brown
Minimize worrying
Notice I didn’t write stop worrying. As a worrier myself, that would be just a tad hypocritical.
Instead, focus on minimizing how much you worry. More importantly, if you are going to worry – worry about the stuff that is really important.
Don’t lose sleep over crap that doesn’t matter anyway.
For an excellent book that can help you understand what’s important and what’s not, I highly recommend – The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck by Mark Manson. (Just a heads up this book contains swearing so if that bothers you, this book might not be for you.)
This is your life
Of course, you want to be there for the important people in your life. It’s part of being human.
Yet this is your life, not someone else’s. They need to walk their own path.
Find their own truth.
Protect and cherish your own happiness and emotions. In the end, it will be a lot more beneficial to yourself as well as the other people in your life.
If you enjoyed this post, please share it with your friends on social media.