Nobody is perfect.

Every individual has his or her own strengths and weaknesses.

Every individual has a good side and a bad side.

We all realize this about others, but how often do we reflect on this within ourselves?

Nowadays, it is the latest craze to act full of yourself, narcissistic or over-confident. Sure, confidence is a great quality to have. But blaming others for being "the problem" and never looking within ourselves? Not so much.

This year I have discovered the true power of recognizing toxic traits within myself (and not just in the others around me).

People often have a hard time digesting this topic, as no one wants to admit that they may be the problem.No one wants to admit to themselves they have traits they should work on.

It is so much easier to put the blame on someone else in your life.

But what if you are the cause of toxicity in others' lives or in your own life?

What everyone should be doing is reflecting on themselves, their relationships and the environment around them to see where they can improve. Whether you are toxic in a relationship, a poor sport on a team or a bossy leader, there is room for everyone to change who they are if it is done for the greater good.

The first step to improving yourself is identifying toxic traits you may have.

A few common ones are impatience, selfishness, poor listening skills, inconsistency, playing the victim, neediness and more. There are plenty more to go around, but those are just a few. I for one am able to make a list of negative attributes about myself.

The key, however, is to not get down on yourself based on your negative qualities. You should not get defensive either.

As said before, EVERYONE has negative traits they could work on. Not just you.

The next step to improving yourself is reflecting on how this trait affects the lives of those around you.

Do your relationships fail because you don't put enough trust in your partner? Do your friends stop coming to you with problems because you can never remember what they said? Does your boss leave harder tasks to other employees because you aren't punctual?

These are situations that we must take into account. It is important to understand your impact.

The last step to improving yourself is getting a hold of your trait.

Nothing will be fixed in one day.

You don't just wake up one day a better listener. You won't just wake up one day no longer wanting constant reassurance from your partner.

Once you have identified and come to terms with whatever quality you are trying to improve, then you can you move forward.

Nothing will change all at once, but it is important for you to make the conscious choice and effort to fix the problem.

It can start small, like focusing on the good things that happened during the day if you are a pessimistic person. Making an effort to listen more than you talk on your lunch break if you are constantly talking over people. Not quadruple texting your significant other when you don't know where they are if you aren't a trusting partner.

As long as you go out of your way to make the effort to create change in your life, you will slowly but surely start letting go of those toxic traits you hold.

It is a day by day process.

Another important tip for this process is to remember that you cannot change the past. But you are in the process of changing the future. As time goes on, you'll begin feeling more confident in yourself and the relationships around you.

Now if you are sitting here reading this article and thinking that there is nothing you can improve on, that is just ignorant. Typically, those who are comfortable with their negative qualities are either afraid to change or too lazy to make the effort to become a better person.

Ultimately, self-growth and improvement are parts of life. If you cannot recognize a place in your life where you can grow, you are missing out on a great learning opportunity.

Lastly, I'll leave you with this: Even your negative qualities can be good at times.

Yes, it is important to recognize and improve upon them, but our negative and positive traits make us uniquely us.

Our mixture of good and bad makes us our authentic selves.

But working to be the best we can be is the most authentic thing we can do in the end.