Business Detox

As my friends and regular clientele know, the blog has taken a backseat to family matters for a few weeks, and probably will for a bit longer, but I came across this piece on Entrepeneur.com the other day, and I was compelled to share. In the event that you are unable (or too lazy) to click the link, here’s the Cliff’s Notes version:

Toxic people drain your energy and slow your roll, which will hold you back as a small business owner. There are 8 types you should avoid like the plague for the sake of your career:

1. Judgemental people.

2. Envious people.

3. Control freaks.

4. Arrogant people.

5. Perpetual victims.

6. Negative Nancies.

7. Liars.

8. Gossips.

Okay, before anyone cries hypocrite, let me state for the record that I am or at some point (in the not that distant past) have been all of those people. Here’s the thing, though: I’m not rich yet, so I’m willing to at least entertain the possibility that I’m not doing everything right.

That said, I think there should be a couple caveats here. Primarily that constructive criticism is vital to success, so you can’t get so hung up on eliminating negativity and analyzing people’s motivations that you surround yourself with only cheerleaders and yes men. You need peers that will tell you the frank truth even when it’s unpleasant. Also that your friends and associates are only human - everybody has bad days, and some seem not to have many good ones, but that doesn’t make them unworthy of your attention. We aren’t talking about kicking people who care about you and your business to the curb here - only dismissing the consistently, irrationally negative behavior that wears you down, saps your motivation, and feeds your inner critic without giving back anything of value.