"'Love Your Neighbor as Yourself' Includes that Annoying Guy in the Next Cubicle!"

You can’t love them if you can’t deal with them.

If you aren't dealing with difficult people at work right now, consider yourself lucky. But the chances are excellent that you’re going to have to deal with them at some point. You’ve got to learn how to deal with them because the negativity they inject in your work life often spills over to your personal life too. The stress and pressure you feel make you miserable and you start to dread getting out of bed in the morning. Your stomach gets tied into knots on Sunday night as you think about going to work on Monday.

Jesus told us (in Matthew 22:36-40 and in Luke 10:25-28) that one of the two Great Commandments is to “Love your neighbor as yourself.” In Luke, he gives us the Parable of the Good Samaritan as an example of who is our neighbor and how to be a neighbor to others.

The people we work with really are our neighbors.

And they can be incredibly exasperating.

The stress of meeting deadlines, fear of job cuts, striving to get ahead, and other pressures contribute to our short fuses.

How do we deal with these people in a way that addresses the problem and is consistent with our Christian faith?

Below are some of the common types of difficult people.

Each live link indicates there’s an article with tips to deal with that specific type of personality. No link means the article isn’t written yet but will be. Be sure you don't miss any new tips and sign up for the newsletter or RSS feed so you’re alerted when the site’s been updated

If you’ve got a tough person you’re trying to deal with and you don’t see their type listed here, drop me a note using the form below and I’ll do my best to add it to the list. I may even answer your question in the next issue of The Mustard Seed, my monthly newsletter.

Subscribers get a free chapter from my e-book Faith at Work, vol. 1: Triumph Over the Seven Deadly Sins. They'll also be the first to learn about Faith at Work, vol. 2: Love Thy Neighbor...Even the Annoying Guy in the Next Cubicle!. That book will go into detail about dealing with those people who make you crazy at work...how to learn to deal with them to lower your stress level, get more enjoyment at work, and most importantly...follow the commandment to "Love Your Neighbor as Yourself."

Common Types of Difficult People

Bullies

Erratic Behavior (Those completely unpredictable people)

Generally Annoying Habits (A broad category for generally harmless but annoying behavior)

Know it alls

Passive / Aggressive

Your difficult person isn’t listed? Use the form at the bottom of the page and let me know what type of behavior is most annoying to you and I'll respond either in the newsletter, in the book I'm working on now (Faith at Work, vol. 2: Love Thy Neighbor...Even the Annoying Guy in the Next Cubicle!.

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