How Not To Apologize To Much

A couple months ago, there was an article on Buzzfeed about a woman who was constantly apologizing. Are you a victim of this?

In the article the author wrote, "Women tend to apologize more frequently than men, a study in Psychological Science shows." Whether it is a genuine apology for a mistake you made or because you took too long washing the dishes, saying "I am sorry." is a horrible habit I acquired.

In the article, the author wrote down every time she apologized for a day. Some of her apologies were:

After taking a sip of soda and making that satisfied “ahh” sound.

Having to pee.

Not texting enough.

Texting too much.

Asking a question.

Being told where to swipe a credit card.

Being bumped into.

Apologizing.

After writing down every time she apologized, she was much more aware of doing it and started to catch herself before saying it.

I, myself, am constantly apologizing for silly and ridiculous things. I just recently realized this, so, I took note. Here are my 31 things that I said, "I am sorry" for:

1. Not texting back.

2. Taking too long cutting chicken.

3. Taking too long picking out candy.

4. Not knowing how to weigh my salad on a self check out register.

5. Stepping on my cat.

6. Asking a question.

7. Not making enough money.

8. Feeling sad.

9. Having a headache.

10. Being tired.

11. Asking for directions.

12. Asking someone to repeat themselves.

13. Thinking I am bothering someone.

14. Putting a bib on my niece so she can eat her lunch.

15. Not giving enough attention to my Sister's dog.

16. Feeling cranky.

17. Having my period.

18. Not finding a new job fast enough.

19. Drinking soda.

20. Pulling the bed sheets on my side of the bed off while I sleep.

21. Not starting the dish washer.

22. Not eating leftovers.

23. Not properly measuring out my niece's cereal.

24. Not feeling well.

25. Sniffling

26. Texting my boyfriend while he is at work.

27. Not knowing how to cook something.

28. Taking too long deciding what my boyfriend and I should have for dinners this week.

29. Forgetting to bring over apples to my Sister's.

30. Laughing at my cat.

31. Apologizing.

Some apologies were silly right?

In a 2006 MySpace blog post I wrote, "I am constantly apologizing to people. It would be nice if just once someone apologized to me."

I would say that I am more aware of saying 'I am sorry' more recently than I was before this exercise. I even went through texts and realized I not only was apologizing verbally - I was always doing it quite frequently digitally as well. I have also noticed that other people will stop me and tell me I am apologizing for something when I shouldn't be. I believe if I continue to catch myself each time I even think about apologizing it will dwindle down until 'I am sorry' truly needs to be said.

Are you constantly apologizing? Try this exercise and comment below. I would love to know your apologies along with some advice you might have on this silly bad habit.

This article was written by Sara Wheeler. You can follow Sara on Twitter at @Sararosewheeler. Also read some of her other work here.