How to stop negativity bias from sabotaging you
Written by Alex Poeter
Have you heard of “negativity bias”? It’s the idea that humans are hardwired to pay more attention to negative than positive experiences. A lot of research has been done on this and it’s believed that our hardwired negativity bias has been instrumental for our evolution. Earlier in human history, being able to be more attuned to potential threats and dangers was crucial to our survival. However, nowadays having our negativity bias activated can interfere with our personal and professional growth. And here is why.
Because of our hardwired negativity bias, no matter how many positive experiences we have in our work, personal lives, or relationships, one negative experience can completely taint our positive experiences. The same goes for our achievements and successes: We can make a lot of progress on something we’re working on and when one thing happens that our mind decides to judge as “wrong” or as a mistake, we can easily feel discouraged and even hopeless.
When we’re internalizing negative experiences at the expense of positive ones, we’re conditioning and programming ourselves for unnecessary limitations. Instead of continuing to build on our successes, we tend to become more focused on our deficits, which feels deflating and unmotivating. This in turn can have a negative impact on our ability to live into our full potential. Here are three steps that can help you to neutralize your negativity bias.
(1) Create awareness of how this bias tends to show up in your work, personal life and relationships. This ensures that the negativity bias stops operating in the dark where it can more easily control your experiences. Bringing it into the spotlight allows you to see and know what you’re dealing with. This gives you greater control and choice.
(2) Reframe your understanding. Recognize that a “mistake” doesn’t say anything about who you are as a person and what’s truly possible for you. This means there is no need to internalize a “negative” experience as a new limiting belief or story about you. Instead you can decide to embrace so-called failures and mistakes as an integral part of your growth process and as opportunities to learn what is and isn’t working.
(3) Become more intentional about acknowledging, honoring and celebrating your successes, no matter how small they might appear to the judging mind. This means making time and space available to integrate your successes into your nervous system and emotional wiring. It’s like soaking a white shirt in cranberry juice: The longer you let it soak, the harder it is to get it out.
I’d invite you to take a moment and write down all of the successes and accomplishments you’ve created since the beginning of this year. Then try to feel into a deeper sense of accomplishment and reflect on:
What are the strengths and talents of mine that have allowed me to create these successes?
How can I keep building on these successes and accomplishments to live more fully into my purpose and potential this year?
The more you can acknowledge and celebrate your successes, the more likely you’ll feel inspired to keep creating experiences that allow you to grow and have a positive impact on the world.