WHY YOU SHOULD LET GO OF PET PEEVES

I hate when a stranger invades my personal space. Like the person who takes up the armrest on an airplane. Or the concertgoer who dances her way into the area around my seat.

This pet peeve usually causes me to focus on my irritation for the entire flight or show, instead of relaxing and enjoying the day.

Like me, you probably have a pet peeve or two. While they’re common, there’s a compelling reason called the “heliotropic effect” that should encourage you to get rid of them.

Pet peeves stand in your way of being heliotropic. When you keep your pet peeves around, you feed and groom them and nurse your irritation. You pour salt on your roots, as well as someone else’s, instead of letting in the sun.

Pet peeves can come from a variety of places, conscious and unconscious. Some are emotional habits we picked up over the years but didn’t examine.

We don’t stare them down because there’s a kernel of truth in our irritation or frustration. There’s some reason for justified annoyance, so we only focus on that part. We cop a holier-than-thou attitude.

Pet peeves are often formed from a deep, innate sense of justice. They’re transgressions that we feel are inappropriate that need to be corrected...read more