The behaviour of trying to attract attention from others by being disruptive or extremely extroverted is something that can occur within all of us. Attention seeking revolves around the idea that we act in the hope of gaining validation or acceptance. Most people who exhibit the behaviour are believed to do so without much regard for the potential consequence. While there are many reasons why we may act in this way, purposefully or not, we can endeavour to find the root of the problem and understand why this behaviour is negatively affecting us.
Which of our treatments can best help you address you ego?
- Guided meditation: By practising mindfulness and reflecting on our thoughts and actions, we can take learn about why we are driven to seek attention, and replace those negative thoughts with a more positive mindset.
- Self-development programme: We can help you to take address the insecurities that drive you to seek attention, and help you to address them.
Why do we Seek Attention?
Attention seeking occurs for lots of reasons. Sometimes it can happen out of jealousy or because we feel threatened by other people. But on the flip side, we may be compelled to seek attention because we lack self-esteem or find ourselves lonely, as a result seeking attention in desperation of communication or reassurance. Generally, the reasons we seek attention are associated with negative self-talk and a lack of confidence or belief in ourselves.
The Problem with Attention Seeking
Attention seeking is neither a constructive nor a genuine way of seeking communication or solving our problems. Attention seeking behaviour seeks to deflect or avoid the issues we face by finding quick resolve in attention or disruptive, harmful behaviour. While it may seem easy to gain attention due to our shortcomings, working on the short comings in the first place is a better, more important way of resolving the wrongs, which makes us act poorly in the first place.
How to Prevent Attention Seeking
In ourselves, we can aim to prevent attention-seeking through the mindful analyses of why we are motivated to act in specific ways, especially if they are sporadic or unpredictable. It can be difficult but developing such a thought process can be beneficial in identifying a leaning towards attention-seeking and actively attempting to stop such behaviour.
In others, the technique of planned ignoring is often helpful in preventing attention-seeking behaviour. This works by avoiding responding to behaviour which you deem intended to seek attention. As attention-seeking is intended to respond, deliberately ignoring it is often the most effective solution that allows it to cease.
