What shouldn’t you do? We know what we should do. What advice to listen to but what shouldn’t we do. 

We hear how to make good decisions but how do we avoid bad decisions? 

We know what to do but What should we not do?

We will get into this post. 

Here are 3 things you shouldn’t do.

• Don’t make a decision under pressure.

Any decision made under pressure is never a good decision. 

I know now is the time we are told to jump off the wagon even when it seems scary. But sometimes maybe step back from the edge and ask yourself why you feel scared. 

You may realise something about you that you never knew before. Don’t be pressured into saying YES so quickly that if you took a little more time you would have said NO. 

One of the things I learnt in my Law of contract class was that, any contract signed in a hurry is often to your disadvantage. 

So always be weary of anyone who wants to induce you into signing a contract in a hurry. Take a step back, consider not making a move at all and see how things play out. 

Opportunities aren’t like belly buttons, you get more than one. 

So before jumping off, take some time to really analyse what you’re getting into and trust me, some clarity will come. 

• Don’t risk your mental health for anything.

I cannot stress this enough but there isn’t anything. I mean anything worth risking your mental health for. 

Because at the end of the day, it’s just you and your health. 

One of my strongest beliefs is that how you treat something, is how it will treat you. 

For instance: my laptop name is Betty. She’s sweet and kind. Over the few months since I’ve gotten Betty, I’ve built a whole persona around her. 

I clean her frequently, never place her directly on the floor, charge her appropriately and do everything I know I should do to take care of her.

Occasionally I even talk to her. Call me crazy but she takes good care of me, like I do her. In the months I’ve had her, she’s been nothing but a total sweetheart. 

I may not name all my possessions but I am sure to translate the same level of care to all of them. 

It’s the same way with your mental health. How you take it matters. How you feed it. How you guard it. Because at the end of the day it’s yours and no one else’s. 

In the same way, my friends first encountered Betty and they treated her in a standard less than I would, I am quick to correct this and inform them how they should address and treat her. 

Likewise when someone oversteps it’s your duty to let them know not to because you won’t ever stand for it. 

No one is going to look after you better than you. It’s a journey we all are on. 

• Don’t talk so much. 

Something I’ve realized about talking too much is that you don’t get to listen enough. 

Now I’m not saying you should be broody and aim to be mysterious. 

What I’m saying is, try to listen more. Especially around people you want to know more about.

The mouth tells lies all the time but you know what’s always truthful, body language. 

You can’t hide or mask your body language and even if you can, you will slip up. 

The problem is nobody is paying attention. That’s why you need to listen more and look for contrary signs in the words uttered and what their body language reveals. 

Someone can say the words, ‘I love you’ but it’s theri body language that expresses that love. 

These days, I’ve learnt to go quiet around people and not utter more than a few words or a nod to show I’m listening. 

Because while I’m listening, I’m also trying to see subtle cues that slip out in their body language. 

A good book to read on these subtle signs is The Laws Of Human Nature By Robert Greene. 

And another thing you can count on with body language is that it will always repeat itself. 

Closing Remarks

Everyone tells you what to do but the real question is what we shouldn’t do. 

What are things we do that we ought not to do?

And the reason we do them is because we don’t know what not to do. 

So I hope you now know what to do.