Complaining Is a Wasted Time

The average person complains between 15 and 30 times a day.

In minutes, we may spend up to 15 minutes of our day complaining about things happening to us. Some complaints are short but frequent, and some can take up a whole conversation.

That is exhausting.

Though complaining is normal as it helps us verbalize our feelings, emotions, and reactions to the world, when we do it too often, it only wastes our time while bringing no joy or solutions to our so-called problems.

Expressing discontent or resentment is essential, but while we think we may be just venting, what we are doing seriously impacts our happiness.

In the past weeks, I have been observing myself and generally people around me, trying to understand why we complain and what happens when we do so.

This is what I got.

• Complaining to sound like we have things going on — I often complain about things happening to me to say that I have something going on, I have a life! There is that meeting I have, dinner I have to cook, or report I have to submit… if I don’t complain that I have to do all these things, how will my friends know I have something happening in my life.
• Complaining is mainly negative — When we complain about things going on in our life, we usually do it so negatively (how we don’t like something, that deadline we don’t want to meet, or that dinner we don’t want to cook). This puts us off about that particular thing we are supposed to do before even starting to do so. Complaining tends to decrease the likelihood of positive action, and frankly, it’s just not worth it.
• None cares about your complaints — When we complain about so many little things that happen to us daily, we become a little annoying and sound like a child who needs attention. Take a minute and think of that one person in your life who complains a lot and how annoying that is to you. Maybe, you are that person to someone else :).

Complaining is an unmet need, and we need to learn to treat it as such. Instead of going around pouring negativity all day, take a moment to reflect on your need to complain. Is it because you want attention, want to express discontent, or genuinely need someone to talk things with?

“The only thing complaining produces is waste both your time and mine.” — Martin Rooney.