5 things you can do instead of complaining

It’s always tempting to complain when you’re frustrated about someone or something.

You rant about every wrong and when your colleagues agree with you, you feel satisfied. But then nothing changes, and the next time you encounter the same problem, you make the same complaints.

Complaining makes you feel good, but ultimately, it’s unproductive. The problem will continue to exist, and you will feel drained from the negativity – unless you do these five things instead of complaining.

Take action
If you’re not willing to change the situation, then you shouldn’t really complain. Identify the problem, think of solutions, and start working on them. And don’t give up (and complain about it) when you hit a roadblock. Keep going until the problem is solved. You’ll have a deeper sense of satisfaction that complaining ever gave you.

Complain effectively
This means making a valid complaint to the right person so that something will be done to fix it. Speak up and gather support for your complaint so that management has to take action. Highlight the benefit of the change to increase your success rate.

Change your perspective
This isn’t easy to do, especially if you’ve been focusing on the negative. Decide if what you’re complaining about is worth complaining about. Adjust to the situation. Look at it from another point of view. Use the situation as a learning point. Take it as an opportunity.

Let go
Some things cannot be changed, or are beyond our control. Why dwell on things that make you unhappy? Let go of that thing, accept the situation, focus on other things that are right, choose to be happy, and move on.

Change yourself
Some things can be made better by changing how you do things. If you work in an open plan office and it’s too noisy, use noise-cancelling headphones. If you’re the only one who feels that the office is too cold while everyone else is fine, bring your winter wear to work.

Complaining isn’t always a bad thing – sometimes people just want to vent and feel better about it. But when it becomes a bad habit that affects your and your colleagues’ moods, it’s time to stop and think about changing your attitude.