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What is passive aggressive behaviour? Here’s how you can deal with it
We sometimes fail to identify aggression when it’s hidden behind a grin or eye-roll; Read on
Passive aggressive behavior is just like the name suggests. It’s when someone passively expresses aggression. Sometimes when people have troubles expression their anger or negative emotions, they tend to express it with a smile on their face and they leave you confused. It makes you wonder what really happened. They mask their aggression with doe eyes and a smile. People can sometimes express anger in a very non-hostile way and this tends to leave you in a fix. You don’t know what hit you and you don’t know how to respond. They do this just to express their anger and when you get aggressive it suddenly becomes your fault because they didn’t mean it like that or they said it with a smile! And no sarcasm is not really passive-aggressive behavior. This behavior runs deeper and signals at other underlying issues. Here’s how you can deal with it.
1. First and foremost, you need to spot passive-aggressive behavior. Don’t ignore it and don’t let it slide. If you let it go this one time, chances are that this will happen again and again. Identify it and don’t turn a blind eye to it.
2. Point it out. Don’t shy away from pointing out passive-aggressive behavior. It’s important to call out the people who engage in such behavior so that they know that you are not turning away from it.
3. Don’t engage with them. They want you to take the bait and engage. They want the drama and chaos. Don’t respond to their behavior or passive-aggressive statements.
4. Don’t beat around the bush. There is no point trying to explain anything to them without being direct. Be straightforward and tell them the way it is. They engage in this behavior because they want to avoid confrontation. Addressing the problem and confronting will make things better for you.
5. Tell them that you will not tolerate such behavior. Let them know that they will be punished for passive-aggressive behavior and let them be careful.
6. Don’t let it affect you. This is not about you, it’s about them. If it gets too much to handle take a step back and walks away. Get yourself out of the situation.
