The best way to knock the chip off your neighbors shoulder is to pat him on the back.--Anonymous Some people are very irritating. They are so disagreeable that most of us have trouble getting along with them, and there is a tendency for many of us to avoid such people whenever possible. But sometimes they are family members, neighbors, or co-workers whom we cannot avoid. In such cases, we must learn to get along with these people. This is no easy task, but we must remember that, no matter how annoying a person might be, everybody needs contact with other people, whether they realize it or not. There is a strong temptation to fight fire with fire. When people mistreat us, we are inclined to return the harsh treatment. But criticism, no matter how constructive or tactful, almost never works with such people. They are extremely sensitive to criticism, and they put up their defensive armor at the first hint of it. They are not about to admit to any faults. In their minds, the fault lies with other people--not with themselves. It is hard to know why some people are so difficult to get along with. In some cases, they may have suffered some great tragedy in the past that has left them embittered toward life. They may be mad at the whole world and see everybody they come into contact with as an enemy. Some may have never received enough attention when they were growing up. They may have never experienced true love from anyone. Others have probably received so much criticism in the past that they just cant take any more, and are determined to get even with people in general. There are many plausible explanations as to why people behave in such a way. But, regardless of the reason, most of these people are hurting more than we can imagine. It may be hard to treat difficult people kindly. But, in some cases, we might be surprised at how some of these people respond to our taking a genuine interest in them. A compliment is something that most of these people rarely get, and it might have more impact than we think. Many of these people desperately need for someone to take an interest in them. They are lonely, and may feel they have been abandoned by society. We may not think they deserve any tender loving care, but they probably need it far more than most people. So maybe it is true that the best way to knock the chip off their shoulder is to pat them on the back. Think about it. Copyright 2014 Allen W. Smith TB-109—Posted 07/04/2014 NOTE: Please feel free to download these essays and reproduce them for others. If a particular essay seems to be especially helpful to you, please pass it on to as many people as possible. Thank you!
Posted on: Sat, 05 Jul 2014 01:48:22 +0000
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