Belittle them at every available oppurtunity, toy with them, chew them up & spit the buggers out.
Leave them a quivering mess, shirking in dark corners with only themselves & the bitter taste of failure for company…mwahhh!
We have one really negative nancy that is also a control freak know-it-all (ironic?) and we are actually pretty good friends. She goes off on tangent’s but after I started listening to what she was saying, she actually could probably run this company pretty well, but no one ever listens and nothing gets fixed.
@Headhurts I would say as little as possible; in fact, I’d just nod my head as she or he was speaking. I’d use words all the time such as, “ok” “uh=huh” , shake my head back and forth for “no.” Then I’d develop stomach problems because I’d be running against my true feelings of frying pan to the skull .
I marshal all of my thoughts and arguments in advance. If the other person makes an out-of-line remark, I call them on it. I say something like, “Please don’t make personal remarks. Let’s stick to the topic at hand.” The I cut it as short as possible.
I don’t know that I have a lot of direct experience with this, but after a week in India to refresh my memory, I can tell you how a lot of Indians do that with those of us from the West who must often seem this way to them:
Nod a lot. Be very agreeable and respectful. Take lots of notes. Smile all the time. Be sure to do exactly as they say every minute that they’re watching you. Don’t commit to anything in writing, unless the writing is very unclear, ambiguous and riddled with mistakes that make it essentially meaningless.
Then just do whatever the hell you were going to do anyway. It makes life simpler for you, and frustrates the hell out of them.
@uberbatman That was actually my point, a lot of time people aren’t being nasty just to be nasty, there’s almost always an underlying reason, so I take the time to find out what it is. That makes them human, and I can relate usually.
As little as possible. When it’s unavoidable in a business setting, I humor them and go on about my business. Unless, as @marinelife said, they say something so bad I must call them out on it.
When it’s personal, I’m afraid I’m not able to be quite so detached. I will tell them flat out they’re being an asshole, then walk away or hang up the phone.
I have a hard time dealing with people like this, and it’s nearly impossible for me to humor them. So I usually nod a few times, roll my eyes, and walk away.
Try to bury your negative feelings about this person and look upon it as an opportunity for learning how to deal with similar types (maybe worse) whom you’ll surely have to deal with the rest of your life, whether in your career or socially.
He is a neighbour where I am staying and I finally told him (after coming over here to bother me for the third time), that I needed to get stuff done. “Well, I have to go! Have a good one, Bob”. Most people let him talk.
I also threw my hands up in the air giving the “what the hell are you doing sign?” when he kept walking across the property. He saw me and got the hint. Now he’s using the road.