I talk and write a lot about Life Design – creating and 
sculpting a life that is fulfilling for you.  It is about 
shaping your personal landscape and environment.

Part of that environment involves being conscious of who you mix 
with and their effect on you.  Beware of mixing with people who 
are consistently negative and critical, not only of themselves, 
but of others and their ideas. 

It’s okay to vent and get things off your chest occasionally, 
but the Value Vampires have turned this into a fine art!  They 
planted seeds of doubt in your mind and then you started to 
water them!  Don’t tell them your hopes, aims, ambitions or 
goals too early, before they’ve had time to develop; they 
could kill it in infancy!

The Value Vampires are constantly whining and holding pity 
parties with anyone who is not aware enough to decline the 
invitation! They put you and your ideas down and typically ask 
questions like: “why do you want to do that for?” (which is 
really a negative judgement in disguise).  Understand that 
when they do they often have a hidden, often unconscious 
agenda or a low opinion of themselves and their abilities.

Value Vampires drain you – a night out with them leaves you 
with a nasty taste in your mouth and normally feeling much 
worse about things.  As you begin to make changes in your life, 
then you’ll probably find yourself attracted to different kinds 
of people and will not want to conduct your relationships, 
friendships with them anymore – and they’ll either change or 
leave your life.

 How can you start to change this?

 (i) Focus on building a positive support network – rather than 
     seeking to avoid the Value Vampires.  You’ll start from a  
     more productive mindset and begin to think about who you  
     want to be with and why.

(ii) You are what you attract.  If you’re constantly surrounded  
     by and mixing with those who have a consistently negative  
     approach to life, then it’s very easy to discover who the  
     biggest Value Vampire is – look in the mirror!

Develop a more positive and proactive approach within yourself 
and you’ll find that you are cultivating more positive and 
attractive relationships.