If you fill your conversations with judgments of others, you're making the person you're speaking with self-conscious of being judged themselves, Treasure said.

They'll be afraid to open up to you and may shut down completely.

Treasure said that his mother, in her latter years, became incredibly negative--she would even find the disappointment in arbitrary things like what day it happened to be. Treasure would force himself to stop listening as he spent time with her.

Choosing to be optimistic will simply make you more enjoyable to talk to, he said. Plus,it's better for your health.

Related to focusing on the darker side of life is complaining, which easily becomes a habit.

Before you know it, Treasure said, you'll be known as the person who complains about the weather, the news, work, and everything else. It's what he calls "viral misery."

Some people have a "blamethrower," Treasure said, putting the blame on anybody and anything except themselves when met with failure.

While others may let the occasional excuse slide, a constant stream of them reveals that you do not take responsibility for your actions.

Exaggeration "demeans our language," Treasure says.

Adding dramatic flair is essentially a form of lying, and "we don't want to listen to people we know are lying to us." 

It's dangerous when opinions and facts become confused.

Nobody wants to be bombarded with opinions stated as if they were true.

This story first appeared on Business Insider.