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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
Lifestyle
Eleanor Gordon-Smith

I’ve realised I am too contrarian. How can I change this?

Eleanor
A painting of people talking across a table
‘Contrarianism can make people feel stupid for nearly everything they say.’ Painting: The Debate of Socrates and Aspasia, by Nicolas-André Monsiau (1754-1837). Photograph: Tibbut Archive/Alamy

I recognise myself to be very contrarian, to the point of reacting in this fashion in every situation, regardless of what it is. How can I change this?

Eleanor says: It sounds as though there’s a gap between what you want to do and what you do. You can see you’re being contrarian, you want to change that, but that’s not enough to mean things actually change.

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