[dropcap]I[/dropcap]t happens every day. Difficult people bless us with their presence. Okay, so you may be thinking to yourself "bless" is a little over the top, and you're right. People can be down right rude, inconsiderate, and a pain to deal with. Just search on Twitter and you'll come across feeds that reference such emotion. Click here to see what I mean.
I can openly say that I have and still make these mistakes. It will always take a conscious effort on my part. As business professionals one of our fitness goals is to keep stress under control. It is very important not to let difficult people get in the way and ruin our progress.
Focus on these 3 areas that are common mistakes when dealing with difficult people and you may find yourself a little more relieved at the end of the day.
You Become Defensive
When dealing with difficult people it can be a natural instinct to defend yourself. The person may be intrusive, rude or either. However, step back for a moment.
Why? Because the conversation will become a lose / lose situation if you immediately defend yourself. Defending yourself means you believe the other person is wrong. A resolution will then fail and you're stuck with nothing accomplished.
If you have to bite your tongue, take deep breaths. This will allow you to refocus and think rationally. No resolution comes from a defensive state.
You Don't Listen
90% of all disagreements are made by one, or both parties not listening to the other. Go ahead and fact check me. We see this all the time.
Listening is one of the best skills professionals can include in their tool kit, especially when dealing with difficult people.
By actively listening you can understand where the other person is coming from. If it's a client, this may be a GREAT time to see that there are flaws somewhere in your business. Disagreements are excellent times to learn.
Not all difficult people are the same. By listening you can weed out the people that have legitimate concerns from the people that have no hope.
You Avoid Solutions
Most of the time when you deal with difficult people, you think of everything but a solution. You're saying to your self "this client is annoying" or "what a pain."
These may be true, but try presenting a solution. By presenting a solution you are showing the other party that you're making an effort to correct the situation and most people will respect that.
When you understand the mistakes you make when dealing with difficult people, it will only make you stronger the next time a situation occurs. It will also keep your stress levels under control.
By addressing the flaws you make when dealing with difficult people, you will become a stronger you…a stronger professional.
How do you deal with difficult people? Comment below.
