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Abstract

<a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/philosophy-stirred-not-shaken/201411/are-there-positive-addictions">Addiction has a negative connotation</a> for many of us so I don’t think it’s a great idea to think that we have positive addictions. As a matter of fact, I used to think so about sports, health & reading, and somehow it made me feel weird. It made me feel as if I’m different from others because I engage in those activities and many people do not.<h1 id="f884">It’s not an addiction. It’s rational behavior.</h1>I shouldn’t feel guilty in any way for engaging in activities that make me a better person. We all have our flaws and that’s okay, but working on them is a good thing. Without people taking positive actions, I don’t think the world would ever become a better place.So instead of calling myself an addict, even if that would be in a positive context, I prefer to say that I choose to engage in positive actions. A LOT. Does that mean that I’m addicted to them? I don’t think so. I’m no more addicted to a positive action than a rational person is addicted to making a rational choice.If we truly have the choice to draw out all our habits and thoughts, we would choose for the positive ones over the negative ones. There might be small subjective differences as to what the positive and negative is, but many topics can be agreed upon (e.g. health & trauma healing).<h1 id="49ad">Why is positive action being judged as something bad?</h1>Sometimes, I even find myself wondering whether I’m not compensating my flaws by working so hard on them. I look around at other people and see that they ignore their own flaws. Maybe I’m weird for working on them? Maybe I shouldn’t do it either?This discussion has played many times in my head but I have found an answer to it, which is twofold. On the one hand, other people don’t like to be pointed to their flaws. We get uncomfortable by it and people generally don’t like to make changes because it requires hard work and honesty with ourselves.But on the other hand, I have been paying too much attention to other people’s opinions. If I know that I’m doing something right, then why am I letting judgment have the upper hand? I have come to the conclusion that I’m pretty susceptible to other people’s opinions, even if I know that I’m doing

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something right for myself.<h1 id="4ec4">Two key takeaways</h1>First, if you are engaged in self-improvement, personal growth, personal development, or whatever other term you like to give it, don’t see it as an addiction. An alcoholic who is trying not to be addicted to alcohol anymore, is not a positive addict either.The same holds for us when we are trying to improve our lives. Whether that is taking away something bad or creating something good for ourselves doesn’t really make a difference. If we are truly and honestly working on ourselves, we should definitely not feel guilty for that.Additionally, it is okay to show to other people that you are working to be a better version of yourself. Even if other people are not doing that, your example might lead them to their first step as well. Of course, it can also make them feel worse about themselves but I don’t think the genuine positive should be hidden for the ones that choose to be rather negative.<figure id="4825"><img src="https://cdn-images-1.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:800/1*CVdMcYRoOUNVGlF0mmPCkA.jpeg"><figcaption>Photo by <a href="https://unsplash.com/@catalinpop?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Cata</a></figcaption></figure>The second takeaway is a caveat. The need for power and money might be disguised under self-improvement. This is something I’ve been guilty of myself, but I have become experienced in recognizing this thought pattern and not giving in to it.When I’m trying out something new or I find myself working frantically about something, I start to reflect on why I’m actually doing that. I used to be working on projects that I hated, just because they gave me recognition in the industry.The more you identify this pattern, the easier it becomes to shed it. Although you and I have only been in this world for a couple of decades, our minds and bodies have accustomed to the ideas and thought patterns we adopted from a young age. By identifying these patterns more often, we are creating a space to make a change.Remember, you don’t have to label positive habits as addictions. You are just taking positive actions for yourself and the people around you, and that is all that really matters. I wish you all the best!</article></body>

Do You Have Positive Addictions?

Addictions don’t have to be bad, do they?

I used to be ‘addicted’ to soccer when I was five years old. I’ve been ‘addicted’ to gaming when I was 14 years old. Now, I might have been ‘addicted’ to self-improvement since I was 16 years old. I’m just like any other type of addict, or am I?

Over the last couple of years, I’ve often been told that I can get obsessed easily by something new. Whenever I’m trying out a new routine, my friends will mockingly say that I’m addicted to a new trend. I started reflecting on this and wanted to know whether positive addictions exist.

Defining positive addiction

As much as I would love to give you and myself a straight yes-or-no answer, things are more complicated (deep sigh). William Glasser first came up with the term positive addiction and he referred to activities like running and meditation (source to his paper).

He mentions that these positive addictions enhance our lives, unlike the usual (negative) addictions. Additionally, he gave us six criteria that have to be fulfilled to consider any activity to be a positive addiction:

Non-competitive
Easy and not a lot of mental effort
Can do it alone, you don’t depend on others
It has some value for you
If you persist, you believe you will improve (but this is subjective)
You have to be able not to criticize yourself during the activity

Yeah, screw those criteria. I don’t see how something has to be easy or has to be completely non-competitive in order to be considered as a positive addiction. But if an activity does not fall within these criteria, what does that mean anyway? Does that mean it is a negative addiction, or not an addiction at all? Maybe I’m just missing the bigger picture here, but I don’t think these criteria are very helpful or useful to us.

Addiction has a negative connotation for many of us so I don’t think it’s a great idea to think that we have positive addictions. As a matter of fact, I used to think so about sports, health & reading, and somehow it made me feel weird. It made me feel as if I’m different from others because I engage in those activities and many people do not.

It’s not an addiction. It’s rational behavior.

I shouldn’t feel guilty in any way for engaging in activities that make me a better person. We all have our flaws and that’s okay, but working on them is a good thing. Without people taking positive actions, I don’t think the world would ever become a better place.

So instead of calling myself an addict, even if that would be in a positive context, I prefer to say that I choose to engage in positive actions. A LOT. Does that mean that I’m addicted to them? I don’t think so. I’m no more addicted to a positive action than a rational person is addicted to making a rational choice.

If we truly have the choice to draw out all our habits and thoughts, we would choose for the positive ones over the negative ones. There might be small subjective differences as to what the positive and negative is, but many topics can be agreed upon (e.g. health & trauma healing).

Why is positive action being judged as something bad?

Sometimes, I even find myself wondering whether I’m not compensating my flaws by working so hard on them. I look around at other people and see that they ignore their own flaws. Maybe I’m weird for working on them? Maybe I shouldn’t do it either?

This discussion has played many times in my head but I have found an answer to it, which is twofold. On the one hand, other people don’t like to be pointed to their flaws. We get uncomfortable by it and people generally don’t like to make changes because it requires hard work and honesty with ourselves.

But on the other hand, I have been paying too much attention to other people’s opinions. If I know that I’m doing something right, then why am I letting judgment have the upper hand? I have come to the conclusion that I’m pretty susceptible to other people’s opinions, even if I know that I’m doing something right for myself.

Two key takeaways

First, if you are engaged in self-improvement, personal growth, personal development, or whatever other term you like to give it, don’t see it as an addiction. An alcoholic who is trying not to be addicted to alcohol anymore, is not a positive addict either.

The same holds for us when we are trying to improve our lives. Whether that is taking away something bad or creating something good for ourselves doesn’t really make a difference. If we are truly and honestly working on ourselves, we should definitely not feel guilty for that.

Additionally, it is okay to show to other people that you are working to be a better version of yourself. Even if other people are not doing that, your example might lead them to their first step as well. Of course, it can also make them feel worse about themselves but I don’t think the genuine positive should be hidden for the ones that choose to be rather negative.

The second takeaway is a caveat. The need for power and money might be disguised under self-improvement. This is something I’ve been guilty of myself, but I have become experienced in recognizing this thought pattern and not giving in to it.

When I’m trying out something new or I find myself working frantically about something, I start to reflect on why I’m actually doing that. I used to be working on projects that I hated, just because they gave me recognition in the industry.

The more you identify this pattern, the easier it becomes to shed it. Although you and I have only been in this world for a couple of decades, our minds and bodies have accustomed to the ideas and thought patterns we adopted from a young age. By identifying these patterns more often, we are creating a space to make a change.

Remember, you don’t have to label positive habits as addictions. You are just taking positive actions for yourself and the people around you, and that is all that really matters. I wish you all the best!