Have you ever met someone who you think is "the worst?"

Congratulations in advance. Meeting the worst human being is proof that I am living diligently and well. The worst human beings are jealous of those who live diligently.

"Another thing necessary to becoming a creative person is to avoid being sucked into the lives of draining people."
-Julia Cameron

The worst human being. The definition of the worst will differ from person to person. In this article, I would like to talk about people who mess up the lives of others. In *The Artist's Way*, people who mess up someone's life are called "draining people." It's easy to understand if you think of them as the type of people who make you happy as soon as you cut them off.

As you read the 10 characteristics below, if someone comes to mind, you won't be losing anything if you think that they're draining your mind these days, making you waste your time, money, and emotions.

1. Draining people break promises and mess up your plans.

2. Draining people expect special treatment.

3. Your circumstances are not important to draining people.

4. Draining people make you waste your time and money.

5. Draining people drive a wedge between people.

6. Draining people are experts at picking on others.

7. Draining people create drama.

8. Draining people ignore anything other than their own schedule.

9. Draining people hate order.

We inevitably meet draining people. I have experienced this too. The person broke a promise and messed up my plans.

"I guess there was a misunderstanding."

The other person packaged it as a misunderstanding, but it was a lie. Is it not to cover up the situation where they are wrong when they lie and package it as a misunderstanding? I still wonder how a lie can be a misunderstanding.

"I'm so busy these days doing ~."

Who is not busy? We all live in our own different busyness. I was amazed to see how they expect special treatment because they started doing something else. Why do we have to understand unilaterally? Isn't mutual respect a virtue of understanding?

This desire for special treatment is indeed possible because they don't really care about the other person's circumstances. They can only put forward their own position because they ignore anything other than their own schedule.

Is there anyone who enjoys wasting their time and money because of someone else? But in such a case, we need to make wise judgments. Even if there are parts of the money that you have already paid to the other party, you need to make wise choices to save more time.

"Stop dancing the painful tango with draining people. If you think 'I'm exhausted because of that person,' ask yourself if you're not using that person to put off your creative work."

-Julia Cameron

As Julia Cameron said, we can't keep dancing the painful tango because of draining people, so we can't do what we need to do.

Moreover, according to *The Artist's Way*, people who drain others are those whose creativity is blocked. They threaten the creativity of others from being realized.

"Those who can't muster the courage to awaken their own creativity hate to see others' creativity unfold and feel jealousy and threats."

-Julia Cameron

Draining people instinctively know that they are blocked creatively, and that it is very threatening and envious to awaken the creativity of others. What are you talking about? You might think this too, but they can't stand to see others do well, so they mess up the situation according to their own taste.

"Be gentle, but firm and unwavering."

-Julia Cameron

It's not surprising to meet draining people in life. As the saying goes, "Being tired now is proof that I've grown," meeting these people when you're trying hard to live is evidence that you're diligently pursuing your dreams.

When you meet the worst, don't be discouraged about why you had to meet this person, but use it as a driving force for your growth. It will become a fun episode in your essay (or novel, cartoon, etc.) in the future.

I conclude this article hoping that my experience of overcoming the pain after reading *The Artist's Way* will be of some help to someone.

▶ Draining people love drama. As in drama, they are always the main character. Everyone around them moves according to their whims, and they receive their cue lines, entrances, and exits.

▶ The driving force behind draining people is rooted in power, and they can take on the role of an energy source that is exploited and drained from any kind of person. Draining people can be found in almost every situation, in almost every art form. Fame may make them that way. They feed on power, so anything that becomes a source of power can create such people.

-Julia Cameron, *The Artist's Way*