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They bring others down. They have a gift for finding the negative. They are emotionally
exhausting to be around. They inhabit our work places, our families, our schools and they exist in
every corner of society.

Energy vampires are not to be confused with the vast majority of people who simply need help,
support, direction and care... who are serious about working on themselves and their situation.
They are also not to be confused with people who are genuinely looking for answers (not
attention or sympathy) and are prepared to accept responsibility, be accountable and be
proactive.

The people I'm talking about here are relentless in their negativity and are so deeply
entrenched, they are beyond your help.
I am at my happiest when I am working with people to help them confront and deal with their

issues and create their own version of “happiness”... but I will not let people monopolise my time
and energy and I won't buy into their negative attitude, when it is clear they won’t take
necessary steps to help themselves when they can. I don't care how messed up someone's life
or situation is, if they have a good attitude, I'll try to help them.
It's great to be a giver, a carer and a feeler, but now and then we need to take a stand with
certain people.. because if we don't, we begin to suffer and then nobody wins.

Identify the vampires in your life, acknowledge the impact they have on you and make a
resolution to change the way you communicate with those people. Don't buy into their it's-not-
fair-nobody-understands-me-I’ll-never-do-it excuses. Feed it and you'll create a monster.

Be courageous. Tell them that you will not have the same conversations about the same issues
any more. This sounds harsh, but some Vampires need to be avoided. Don't give them too much
time.
Ask them questions like "so you've identified the issues, tell me how you can change things for
the better?" If they refuse to even consider looking for a way out of their situation, don’t be
sucked into their downward spiral of despair.

If you have a vampire who is in your life to stay, family perhaps, create some rules of
engagement... "I will not talk about 'these' issues again until I see you doing this.
" Choose friends and acquaintances wisely. Make sure you spend time with people who will
drag you up, not down. You need to keep your tank full not running on empty. Spending lots of
time with Vampires is draining and unenjoyable.

Increase Your Three Types of Energy

Most successful people can be characterised as having very high levels of energy. Since energy
is the fuel with which everything is achieved, there seems to be a direct relationship between
energy levels and levels of accomplishment. It is hard to imagine a tired, burned-out person
achieving much in life. On the other hand, energetic, positive, forward-moving individuals seem
to get and enjoy far more of the things life has to offer than does the average person.