What complaining is really saying about you.

You may be surprised, but when you complain about someone else, it’s not about them — it’s about you.

Am I pressing your buttons?

That’s okay. Because you’re not really judging me…

You are judging yourself.

When your buttons are pushed it’s something within you that you’re blind to.

Recently, I did this reflection. I found myself repeatedly getting irritated over the same small thing.

Then Carl Jung spoke to me (figuratively). I remembered something he once said that I read…

Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves.

When we judge ourselves harshly, we judge others harshly.

Often not conscious of these judgements, we get feedback in the form of frustration.

This shines a light on what we could not see.

But when we do see, we can work on it, we can love it and we can learn from it.

And more importantly, stop judging ourselves for it.

You’re not doing what’s most important to you.

When we complain a lot, it’s usually a sign we’re not doing what’s most important. We’re not using our strengths and not challenging ourselves to the degree we’d like to be. Or creating the things in the world we wish we would.

We’ve got too much time to criticise and complain.

Because we’re pro-cras-tin-ay-tang!

You’re focused on the wrong things.

Often when we want something to change (a person or situation), we complain. We focus on the problem — not the solution. But…

The secret to change is not on fighting the old, but on building the new. — Socrates

Point being, if we’re focused on the problem, how can we find the solution?