How to Deal with Difficult People

What they say is true.  You cannot change other people.  You can only change yourself. 

What changes can you make in yourself when dealing with a difficult person?

• Don't give your power away. What I mean by this is do not give this person all of your time and energy by obsessing over them. Do not replay conversations in your head and what you think you should have said in reply. You can be sure that the difficult person in your life is not sitting around thinking about you this much.
  
  
• Give your time and energy to those people in your life who are nurturing and supportive. It is amazing how much time and energy we waste upon people who are unkind to us. We react to them, try to figure out why they act as they do, we placate them, and devise ways of making peace. In the meantime, the loving people in our lives quite often get ignored.
  
  
• Use behavioral strategies. Reward good behaviors by telling the person how much you like when they act in compassionate and caring ways. If it is at all possible ignore inappropriate or rude behaviors.
  
• Don't take it to heart. Remember that another's behavior is reflective of them as a person and not you. If an individual is making the choice to behave in hurtful ways then you can be certain that they behave this way to others as well. What they say or do is not a reflection of you or your self worth.

• Repeat back what they say and seek clarification. Sometimes people don't realize what they sound like until you repeat their words back to them. You can say something like: "So what I hear you saying is (repeat their words). Is this accurate?"

• Confront the person if necessary. Confrontation is hard. It isn't like the person is going to say, "Gee you are so right. I have been a total jerk." The person might get angry and upset. But I always like to think that so much of the anguish of dealing with a difficult person is when we fail to stand up for ourselves. Confrontation doesn't mean to lash out or react in anger. It means to state clearly and concisely your terms for what you will and will not put up with. Do not depend upon a certain outcome in order to feel good about saying something. Feel good because you have been honest, assertive, and that you are giving the person a chance to get their act together.

So what about you?  How have you dealt with the difficult people in your life?  What strategies have worked for you?  Do tell all.  We want to hear your story.