You know the ones. People who invite you around for dinner and you seriously contemplate that prospect for a long time before saying ‘Yes’. Likelihood is you’ll leave feeling worse than when you arrived. They zap your energy, take the fun out of life and make you become like them.

Drainpipes. Toxic people. Complainers. Whatever you call them… They defy logic. And whilst some are blissfully unaware of the negative impact that they have on those around them, others do seem to derive satisfaction from creating chaos, pushing other people’s buttons or pulling others into their negative emotional spiral.

Whilst you can’t control what other people say or do. You can control what you let into your mind and who you let into your life.

They only want to pull you down because you’re already above them. Fuckers.

I crave space. It charges my batteries. It helps me breathe. Being around people can be so exhausting, because most of them love to take and barely know how to give. Except for a rare few.

Katie Kacvinsky

You don’t ever have to feel guilty about removing toxic people from your life. It doesn’t matter whether someone is a relative, romantic interest, employer, childhood friend, or a new acquaintance — you don’t have to make room for people who cause you pain or make you feel small. It’s one thing if a person owns up to their behavior and makes an effort to change. But if a person disregards your feelings, ignores your boundaries, and continues to treat you in a harmful way, they need to go.

Daniell Koepke

When you get in the mud with a pig, you get dirty and the pig gets happy.

James Altucher