Difficult People and How to Handle Them

Posted on August 26, 2013

Learning to deal with difficult people is like learning a foreign language. It's well, shall we say, difficult? But as challenging as it is to develop fluency in conflict situations, it's just as hard, if not harder, to learn to detach yourself emotionally from the outcome.

It helps to think about it this way: drama is a childhood phenomenon. So whenever you are faced with hysteria, irrational thinking or out-of-control emotions, know that there is simply a child in the room – a fully-grown adult child, but a child nonetheless.

See, underneath difficult personalities there is an unhealthy, undeveloped, unsatisfied ego who is acting out. Since these egos are remnants of childhood, normal, rational thinking does not apply. They live to ensnare you into their reality when something has happened to make them feel insecure. But, it’s a time warp. Do not go! If you do, you’ll end up mired in another person’s emotional environment that is rooted in the past.

The Ticking Time Bombs

Think Tasmanian devil. These folks are volatile, inconsistent, and unpredictable. They fly off the handle easily and feel empowered by making others walk on eggshells. They stifle free dialogue by shutting other people down, and they kill the possibility of having productive conversations by breeding insecurity in their relationships.


Source material from Psychology Today