Types of Difficult People and 3 Best Ways to Interact with Them at Work

In your workplace, you will meet some who are easy to work with and others who can really irritate you. These are called difficult people and they also come in various types.

Types of difficult people include:

First, there are the aggressive people. These are people who are violent when it comes to working with others. They often get angry, act out, and hurt and cause emotional and physical pain to their co-workers.

Second are the snipers: Snipers are those who are skillful in attacking their colleagues by silently stabbing their back by means of gossip, sarcastic tones of voice, or disapproving looks. You hesitate to interact with them, but when you do hesitate, it brings on even more covert hostility.

Third are the complainers. The complainers are those people who keep on whining about how heavy their workload is. They can't fulfill their task quietly because they keep procrastinating and complaining.

Last are the silent people.  The silent people will give you gloomy looks and reply to your questions with just a nod or with the phrase "I don't know!" Oftentimes, they just work timidly as if they are living in their own world.

Transacting with the aggressor, sniper, complainer, and silent person poses great challenges. They simply are difficult people.  Difficult people will bring your company down because of their constant discouragement, negativity and low energy. 

Here are the three best ways to interact with difficult people.

1. Build a healthy relationship with them. Get to know them. Ask them questions about their family, interests, and dreams. Show yourself as a sincere and trustworthy person by being a friend to them. Develop trust. Be honest and frank with them and share your observations and make requests of them to change their behavior. Respect them as a human being and see them as whole and complete with all of their imperfections.  Ask them to take their anger someone else, to stop gossiping and complaining and to engage rather than be silent. They may not see how difficult they are for often they believe that everyone is like them.
2. Communicate well by listening with curiosity. Let them do the talking since this is their forte. By simply listening, you will slowly gain their trust.  Try to meet regularly and go out after work to minimize the tensions. From that time on, you will become a trusted companion.  
3. Recognize their best assets and qualities and point them out. "Difficult people" act out because they think they are not valued or appreciated by their peers. Flattering them with their outstanding assets would make them feel that you are their admirer and, at the same time, a friend.