Everyone is different and it is our differences that make us unique. The world wouldn’t be as diverse and enjoyable as it is if it wasn’t for these differences, but there are some traits that everyone should have and that everyone should work on.
This isn’t to say that you need to change who you are to match everyone else, but working on yourself and growing is a key part of developing as a person. Working on the traits listed below will improve who you are and strengthen your bonds with other people, as well as benefit you in other areas of your life, like work and socially.
Listening
One of the most important traits that you should continually be working on is your ability to listen. Having the capacity to listen to other people instead of just talking over them will bode well in pretty much every aspect of your day to day life – be it at work or in romantic relationships. Being able to effectively listen will enable you to communicate with people better and have constructive and meaningful conversations, giving you greater depth and the ability to foster healthier relationships in every capacity. This means sitting back and avoiding talking over someone. This can be hard for a lot of people, especially those who are headstrong, but it is possible to be both determined and a good listener.
Integrity
Integrity and honesty go hand in hand and are essential when it comes to building trusting bonds with other people, but they’re especially important for people who are in leadership roles. Being true to your beliefs and telling the truth – no matter how shoddy or unpleasant it is – is always better than flitting between values and hiding the truth. Many people struggle with integrity because of the repercussions that can come with it, but in the end, having integrity is never a bad thing and should always be something people aim to work on. It can take some time to develop enough confidence to stand by your values and not bow to other’s people’s will, but staying true to yourself is one of the greatest traits you can have.
Patience
As the saying goes, patience is a virtue. It often goes hand in hand with listening, and like listening, having patience is useful in every aspect of life. Whether you’re a parent with a young child, a teacher with a struggling student, or if you’re a mill of the run worker and your job is tense, having the ability to keep your cool and remain calm is one of the best traits you can have. There are many ways you can work on increasing your patience; for some, it’s practiced as part of their religion – like Islam. Patience in Islam is widely taught, as it is in other religions like Christianity. For others, learning temper management techniques like counting to 10 and avoiding making decisions whilst angry can better their patience.
Empathy
Being too empathetic can be detrimental, but most people could do with working on their empathy. Often confused with sympathy, empathy is when you put yourself in someone else’s position and try to emulate how they might be feeling. The end result is being able to offer more compassion and kindness, and the world could always use more kindness. Before you jump to conclusions, learn to take a step back and imagine how you might feel if you were in someone else’s position. Empathy typically comes with good listening skills and high levels of patience, but some people are naturally more empathic than others. When you’re empathetic, you’re more likely to make fairer decisions which can foster better romantic and platonic relationships, as well as a more pleasant working environment.
If everyone in the world worked on the traits above, society would be a much calmer and respectful place. For now, try and foster this traits in yourself and see how much of a difference it makes not only to your life, but to others in your life, too.
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