1. Being Right

There is an old saying, “The man who knows everything learns nothing.” This one is straightforward. How do you learn and improve and become a better person? That is right, by being wrong about things. Besides, nothing is more irritating than somebody who will argue to the death over some stupid detail that does not matter anyway. Let go of the need always to be right.

2. Trying to Impress Other People

Take a minute and think back to the three most embarrassing bits in recent memory. Let me guess, at least two of them happened while trying to impress someone. Trying to impress other people is an inherent human quality. We all want to put our best foot forward. But then you can do a new cool action, but if you are doing it because you are insecure and want people to like you, people will see through it and find you annoying. Therefore, people who take what you say and then tell you how they have done something bigger or better than that are so irritating. They are attempting to impress us, to show superiority over us, to dominate us. And the fact that they are trying to be superior proves to us that they are not.

3. Sexual Jealousy

A lot of people get jealous and possessive in relationships. They do not like their partner talking with someone else or hanging out with members of the opposite sex without them. Some people get even crazier. They get jealous of things that happened before they met their partner. They get jealous of things that might happen in the future. Lol, they get suspicious of things that did not happen but could have happened. Sexual jealousy is a waste of energy and toxic for your relationship.

4. Being Offended

Some people in this world seem to believe that they have the right never to be offended, ever. Part of freedom of expression is that some people, sometimes, are going to irritate you or hurt you. That’s part of life. Unless you are inviting people to commit acts of violence, then you really cannot tell them not to. But then being offended is a choice. It is the difference between getting upset about an insult and merely laughing it off. It is the difference between trying to silence somebody else and simply acknowledging that they have different values than you do, even if those values are fucked up.

5. Hiding Your Flaws

People fall in love with each other’s harsh edges. It is our flaws and vulnerabilities that make us different and appealing to others. The more we are willing to expose where we come up short, the more intimacy and connection we will create in our personal lives, and the happier and better we will be in the long run.

Think about this: Where does real success come from? It comes from being satisfied — not because you have reached some pinnacle or destination of success — but confident with that constant process of improvement. It is recognizing that life is riddled with faults and mistakes and appreciating them as much as the successes. Because when you understand your flaws, they lose their power over you. Instead of your weakness, they become your strength. And ironically, they will draw other people to you more than ever before.