Some people are a joy to be around. Others, not so much. You know the types we’re talking about. Whether it’s ignorance, boorishness, aggressive behaviors, indecisiveness, negativity or one of the other, innumerable types, they’re downers. They’re annoying, and they can be hard to deal with, but they don’t have to be. Follow these simple tips, and you’ll find that dealing with these sorts is much, much easier.

Kill ’Em With Kindness

This is your secret weapon when dealing with difficult people of any variety. This is your super power. When they get difficult, you display kindness. Not necessarily understanding, but kindness.

In order for it to work, it’s got to be genuine. There can’t be any faking it here, or it comes across as being passive-aggressive. You’ve got to genuinely be kind to them.

Difficult people tend to react to kindness in one of three ways. They can be disarmed by it, which is the best case, and suddenly more cooperative. Or, they may recognize the contrast with their own behavior and be shamed into behaving better. In the third case, they may not know how to deal with it and simply walk away. In all three cases, you win.

Don’t Try To Change Them

Understand that in the overwhelming majority of cases, the behavior displayed by difficult people is deeply ingrained. It’s not going to change, no matter what you do, or how badly you wish it would. There’s literally nothing you can say, and nothing you can do to change that.

The quicker you recognize this fact and make peace with it, the better you’ll feel. You’ll also find that it totally changes your outlook about such people, and makes genuine kindness toward them come more easily.

Minimize Contact

Sometimes this isn’t possible, but when and where it is, simply take steps to minimize the amount of time you have to spend around the difficult ones. If you currently have one or more difficult personalities in your life, then you already know how exhausting it can be to deal with them on a daily basis. If you can arrange not to be around them all the time, do that. Not only does it give you peace of mind, but it also gives you an outlet. Both are good things.

None of these tips represent a panacea. There will still be times when you have to deal with difficult people, and it will still be annoying, but these tips will make a notable difference!