You Can Choose To Be A Proactive Person Rather Than A Reactive Person

There are two types of people in this world…and it’s not those who like Neil Diamond and those who don’t (love that quote from What About Bob movie!)…it’s proactive and reactive people and which type of person you choose to be will significantly impact the life you will have.

Let’s look at the difference between the two (source CVHS proactive vs reactive people):

Proactive People are:

  • those who take responsibility for their lives and choices
  • those who make it happen
  • bounce back when something bad happens
  • make choices based on values
  • they think before they act
  • they recognize they can’t control everything that happens to them, but they can control what they do about it.

 

Reactive People are:

  • those who blame others
  • easily offended
  • get angry and say things they later regret
  • those who get happened to
  • make choices based on impulse (without thinking about how to respond)
  • whine and complain
  • change only when they have to

 

Proactive people take time to think before they react, where reactive people let situations determine how they respond and they blame their actions on others.

Reactive people tend to always think of themselves as victims. They are easily offended, place blame, and don’t take responsibility for their own actions.

Proactive people have chosen to take control of their lives. They recognize that they may not always be able to control their circumstances, but they recognize that they can always control their attitude about it, their responses to it, and the choices they make as they move forward. Proactive people are amazing to be around because they lift everyone around them.

Reactive people live in state of no control. They let their circumstances determine their feelings and they blame them for their outcomes. They worry and react to things they cannot control and thus they are never consistently happy or at peace. Their emotions are up and down and all over the place on a daily basis. Interacting with them is like walking into a mine field because you never know what you are going to get with them. They bring everyone around them down.

While Reactive people wait for things to happen to them and stress and worry about every possible barrier; Proactive people go out and make things happen! They change things! They improve things! They succeed!

So why in the world ANYONE would choose to be a Reactive person rather than a Proactive person is beyond me! But the important thing is that we ALL have a CHOICE! At any time anyone can decide that from today forward they will be a proactive person and in doing so they take control of their own destiny and happiness…and that is a beautiful thing.

Have a great Monday! It’s gonna be a fabulous week!

~Amy

1 Comment

  • Leanda Miller says:

    Great post. I think this is also known as cause and effect. Being at cause puts you in a situation of control. You can do something to change whatever it is that you’re not happy about. Being at affect…my lousy childhood, parents, school, God etc. did it to me and, therefore, I’m not responsible and can’t do anything to alter it. They always feel short-changed, glass is half empty rather than half full. Why some people choose to be reactive is that they get something out of their suffering – sympathy, attention etc. from others, which then gives them some sort of power & control which they lack, & they usually suffer the most. It’s narcissistic and those in the extreme can be very difficult to live: most are in denial. secondary gain is often the reason some people almost refuse to recover from simple illness or injury – somewhere in the past it’s gotten them sympathy and they repeat it. To get well would mean that they might lose what affection that they feel that they have. Gee that’s tricky to write.

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