5 Heartless Acts That Will Make You A Happier Human

It’s not rude to set boundaries or walk away from someone who has been hurting you – but others might make you feel bad for putting your foot down. Here are a few acts that are commonly mistaken for ‘rude’ and ‘heartless’ that you should actually be doing more of in your day to day life:

Setting strong boundaries.

You shouldn’t let anyone pressure you into doing things that make you uncomfortable. You’re allowed to set clear boundaries about what you will and will not tolerate. You don’t have to be polite when someone is disrespecting you and making you feel uncomfortable. You’re allowed to announce that they’ve crossed a line and they can either change their behavior or walk away because you’re not going to deal with less than you deserve.

Saying no.

You can’t be everyone’s hero. Even though you enjoy helping out others and want your loved ones to feel supported, it’s not up to you to save them. Sometimes, you need to do what’s best for yourself instead of automatically agreeing to help out without even considering the consequences. You don’t want to put too much on your plate at once. You don’t want to exhaust yourself because you’re trying to help a million different people accomplish a million different things. You need to learn how much you can handle and put a limit on how often you’re willing to help.

Treating yourself as a priority.

It’s not selfish to put yourself first. Before you can help anyone else, you have to make sure that you’re doing okay. You’re going to burn yourself out if you overextend yourself without ever stopping to take a break. You’re going to resent everyone you love if you’re doing so much for them that you never get a chance to pursue what you want, to chase after what you deserve. You can’t control whether anyone else treats you like a priority – but you can treat yourself like a priority. You can give yourself the love you’ve been looking for.

Speaking up when you’re upset.

You don’t have to swallow your emotions in order to come across as polite. You don’t have to keep the peace in order to save others from discomfort. If someone is wrong, or someone is making you feel bad about yourself, then you’re allowed to disagree with them. You don’t have to sit there quietly and suffer because you’re cool with your own discomfort but feel bad about causing others discomfort. Your feelings matter, too. If you have something to say, then you don’t need to hold yourself back.

Walking away.

You are allowed to decide that someone no longer fits into the world you’re trying to create for yourself. If someone has hurt you one too many times, or you feel like they are holding you back, then you’re allowed to say goodbye. Just because they were a big part of your past doesn’t mean you need to drag them along with you into your future. You don’t owe anyone your time or attention. If you want to move on from them, then you have permission. You don’t have to feel guilty about walking away.