10 Smart Strategies to Deal with Difficult People
- Written by News Co
As part of the unwritten agreement to live on planet Earth, you'll come across difficult people no matter where you are. Your social status, age, or career doesn't matter either. Difficult bosses, rude customers, bullies, verbally abusive men or women - these people are hard to understand and you can't help but wonder why they do the things they do. We live in an internet-driven age where platforms like the TrueBlue Casino allow us to carry out several activities without having to interact with humans. However, you can't avoid human interaction forever.
What you need are smart strategies to deal with such people. The goal is not to lose your cool and not to forfeit any advantage you may have in the situation. This article will provide you with these strategies by showing you how to:
- Connect with anyone, irrespective of their attitude
- Handle difficult situations without losing your cool
- Focus on yourself so you don't suffer from the actions of others
Here are 10 smart strategies you can use to deal with difficult people and get on with your day.
Connecting with Them
The first strategy for getting along with them is to reach out and find a connection. These people may be a pain to deal with, but your go-to should be trying to make friends with them and not antagonizing them.
1. Practice Kindness
Our natural reaction to attack is to defend ourselves or launch an attack of our own. So, when a difficult person comes at you, you may find it hard to control your emotions. Most of the time, they aim to draw a negative emotion from you such as anger or sadness. Instead of responding with anger, try to be kind. That can sometimes defuse the situation. Two people being difficult with each other will only escalate the situation. When used right, kindness can also get you what you want from unyielding people.
You'll be surprised by how simple courtesy can be perceived as kind gestures. Greet them whenever you meet. Ask how they feel or how their day is going. You can also get them gifts during special occasions or invite them when you host parties or get-togethers.
2. Show Compassion
People often say: “hurt people hurt people,” and this is often true for difficult people. One of the many reasons we react angrily to difficult people is that we assume they take pleasure in getting on our nerves. While this may be true in some cases, you never know what others go through in their homes. Your help or compassion can go a long way in changing their attitudes.
When you show compassion or concern to someone going through issues, they tend to respond positively. For example, imagine a scene where an angry customer tries to return a purchased item months after the period covered by the store's return policy. While the salesperson is well within their rights to refuse outrightly, they should try to show sympathy. They don't have to give a refund, but a display of sympathy and a comprehensive explanation of the store's policy could help to diffuse a heated situation. The store can also offer some compromise such as a small discount in place of the refund.
3. Find Something You Both Like
This strategy works best when you already have prior knowledge of the person's unfavorable disposition. One of the easiest ways to make an instant connection with someone is to find common ground. As humans, we like to feel like a part of a group. Your similarities could revolve around a show, movie, song, food, and so on.
This can get the conversation going between two people and create a sort of kinship. You don't necessarily have to bond, but they'll be less likely to be difficult with you when you have something in common. Could this common interest lead to a lasting friendship? Who knows?
Handling Difficult Situations
Sometimes you might find yourself in difficult situations all of a sudden, with no time to prepare for the encounter. These are the strategies you can use to handle situations like that.
4. Stay Relaxed
Many confrontations would end early but for raised voices, angry expressions, and abusive words. Staying calm in such situations can be a challenge. It gets even tougher if you were stressed before the confrontation. To avoid exploding, take deep breaths and use the few seconds of respite to chew on your words before you let them out. Try to think of happy scenarios, such as the fun you'll have when you get home to your next TrueBlue casino login. You wouldn't want an unnecessary confrontation to ruin the rest of your day, would you?
So, cultivate the habit of staying patient in heated situations, especially if you have to encounter the person regularly. You will find that the resulting outcome is much better than lashing out which only serves to make things worse.
5. Let them See your Point
So many times, the reason for disagreements is because the other person cannot see your side of the story. If you make them understand why you're saying or doing something, it might help them calm down and lead to a faster resolution. In a way, trying to get others to see things from our perspective is a conflict itself, so, you have to be extra careful.
Speak softly without being mean, disrespectful, or patronizing to the other person. Use words like "I think" or "I feel" rather than "you" statements. If possible, try to add some jokes when explaining your side.
6. Be Respectful
Showing respect has a way of getting others to treat you with respect if they're decent enough. No matter how angry you get at the person or situation, you should treat the people involved with respect. This strategy does not involve groveling in any way. On the contrary, you should maintain your stance, but in a way that shows you respect other people's opinions.
7. Ignore Them
Some people are so downright toxic and negative that it will be better not to respond to them. If you find that you’re always getting into the same arguments or situations with a particular person even after trying the strategies above, the next step is to let them go. There’s no point trying to resolve issues with someone who has no interest in a resolution. You don't have to stop talking to them entirely, but you can do your best to avoid situations that may cause another confrontation. If the only way to achieve this is to cut them off, you should do just that.
Focusing On Yourself
Sometimes the best way to handle difficult people is not to dwell on their actions. Accept that they will always be like that no matter what you do and find ways to cope. Here are some helpful coping strategies:
8. Set Limits
Keeping negative behavior away and setting boundaries should be a priority. Distance yourself from emotionally stressful situations for your well-being. If you already know how some of these difficult people act, you can sometimes already predict how conversations are heading. You can proactively combat the situations by steering the conversations your way or simply ending them in time. If you find yourself stuck in a position where you have to meet such people every day at work or in your apartment, set clear boundaries as soon as possible.
9. Understand Yourself
Take time to find out why that person has so much effect on you. Think of reasons why their actions or words affect you so much. If you know why their actions bother you, you may find yourself in a better position to rise above it.
Also, sometimes you have to ask if you’re the problem. Analyze your encounter well before coming to a conclusion. It doesn't hurt to get the opinion of an unbiased third party.
10. Remember that Conflicts are Part of Life
Understandably, a lot of people would much rather avoid conflicts and get on with their day. This is sometimes the way to go, but bullies may take this for granted and walk all over you.
You need to stand up for yourself and demand respect when people get out of line. Some people may never change unless you tell them to. So don't assume they know how their actions affect you.
We all have our strengths and weaknesses. Hence, a few of the strategies above will work better for some than others. Feel free to combine them to find the ideal balance between avoiding conflict and standing up for yourself.
