Narcissists think only of themselves, lack empathy for others, and believe they’re the most important people in the world. They need admiration to bolster their surprisingly insecure self-image. But dealing with them can be deadly difficult.
Get your love elsewhere
A narcissist won’t engage with anything that’s not about him. It’s best not to go to one for emotional counsel or comfort as the narcissist lacks the Emotional Empathy chip and won’t give you the support you crave. Narcissists are extremely judgmental because putting others down raises them up, so instead of supporting you, they’ll undermine you.
“NO” is a complete sentence
Narcissists are heavily invested in their own agenda and don’t recognize this character flaw in themselves. They will push their extremely strong opinions onto you and devalue yours. If you feel you’re being usurped, just say something like, “Thanks for your opinion but I know how I’m going to handle this situation.”
It’s not about you
Although dealing with a narcissist can be hurtful and challenging, remember – the seemingly confident narcissistic personality is in truth deeply, profoundly insecure. Their polar extremes incorporate both grandiosity and low self-esteem. Your behavior does not cause their unbalanced responses – they’re suffering from a recognized personality disorder. It is NOT you!
Keep your personal business…personal
You want to share things with friends, but beware of sharing too much with a narcissist. Narcissists may feign great interest in you and use their charm to extract personal information,but they’ll share it without your permission, twist it to give them the favorable role and adjust it to make themselves the star. Don’t give them any ammunition to use in their never-ending quest to triumph over you.
Avoid arguing
One of the worst things to do with a narcissist is to get into a fight. There’s no fair game with this type of personality. You will not win because they are very adept at finding your weak spots and go straight to your push buttons, and continue to push and push. They’re relentless and exhausting. They never acknowledge anything might be their fault, so they will always blame you. No winning here – walk away!
Don’t fall for their story
Narcissists can be charming in their efforts to entrap you in their lives by flattering you. What then happens is you become the focus of their needs, and must constantly feed their sense of being incomplete. The narcissist can become angry pretty easily if you don’t measure up. If you sense someone is too nice and too needy, best to move on.
Nobody’s gonna rain on your parade
One of the benefits of increasing your emotional intelligence is to remember that you are only responsible for your own behavior. Staying positive is the best way to detach from the narcissist; they feed off getting under your skin. Smile, bite your tongue, and walk – or better – run away!
