How Rude!

Greetings Readers!

I recently started a job working in a call center again and one thing that hasn't (and probably won't anytime soon) changed is the manner in which people treat you over the phone. Some call in, ask for what they want and end the call genuine appreciative of the help you've provided. Others rush you to find an answer to their problem. Others still call in with no other purpose than to test your patience and resolve to provide a pleasant customer experience.

What does this have to do with relationships? Plenty! It's all about interaction people. Some people build up to being rude to you due to the stresses placed upon them throughout the course of the day. For example: You've argued with a spouse, the principal asked you to come in because little Johnny or Susie is acting up in school, you're boss (who just got ragged by HIS boss) snaps at you about your poor work performance even though it's unwarranted…all of this builds up inside and if you don't release it someone's in for a BAD experience with you.

On the other hand some people were just born to be difficult, hateful, mean and altogether unkind. For those people there's not much you can do but extend to them the one thing they are not providing to you – Lovingkindness. Because you never really know why someone is being difficult with you, especially over the phone, you must find a way to interact with them in a positive way that will make you feel better about not "going off" on the person and hopefully make the other person realize that the way they are behaving isn't the most pleasant.

Here are a few things I do to maintain my composure when dealing with difficult and rude people:

1. Remember that their negativity is just that – THEIRS! By doing so you allow yourself to stay detached from their negative energy and still have the ability to effectively interact with them if necessary.
   
2. Rude people are still people. As I mentioned above, you can't ever truly know why people behave the way they do. It could be because of how they were brought up, a specific traumatic experience in their lives that has left them angry, etc. We must realize that these people are doing the best with the emotional resources they have available and attempt to make their day a bit brighter.
   
3. Never stoop to their level. By doing so you only add fuel to the fire and make the entire situation more problematic in the process.
   
4. Meditate! Meditation is a great way to cope with stress and will keep you from becoming one of the rude people you don't want to deal with!
   

What ways do you deal with rude people? Share them with us!

Michael

My II Sense

Follow Me Friday!

Greetings Readers!

Initially, there was a listing in this post of people – great people – that I felt you should know. That's the whole purpose of "Follow Friday" on Twitter, right? Well after reading this post by Damien Basile I've changed my mind about not only the effectiveness of Follow Friday but also about its purpose for My II Sense.

Check out what Damien has to say here and chime in with your thoughts on Follow Friday. Are you still for it after reading his post? Did it change your mind about participating on Follow Friday?

Also, to everyone that has received a Follow Friday from me or been included in one, my intent was to showcase people that I felt were noteworthy, doing something positive or just all around cool people to know. I agree with Damien that there is a better way to do this than via Follow Friday and will be incorporating other methods of connecting you with great relationship resources via this blog and forthcoming site.

Michael

My II Sense

Your Relationship with a Healthier You

Greetings Readers!

I'm still working on getting additional contributors to provide health and wellness content. In lieu of that I'd like everyone to think about their current health on all levels – spiritual, mental, emotional and physical – and what you'd like to improve. What would you continue? What would you change? Comment and let us know; we'll try to address as many comments as we can in subsequent posts. Questions about specific health related topics? Send those too!

My II Sense

Connecting with the Most Wonderful Person in the World – YOU!

OK, OK…so TECHNICALLY it's Tuesday but I wanted to still get this first "Meditate on This" post in this week.

This weeks' quote is from the Buddha and states, "You, yourself, as much as anybody in the entire Universe, deserve your love and attention".

Indeed, in our daily lives we focus so much on making others happy we often neglect our Selves. Now that doesn't mean that you wake up in the morning, flip everyone the bird and shout to the roof tops "Screw you! It's about ME now!" On the contrary, you put yourself first so that you may attend to that can use your help.

Think about it for a second. How effective can a mother be to her child if she is sick? She must nurse herself back to health enough to be able to take care of her little one's needs. Similarly, how much more effective would we be if we took time each day to nurture our inner selves before attempting to engage the world at large?

I encourage each of you to take time each day in whatever way you see fit to truly get in touch with your Self and THEN tackle your day to day activities. Let me know how it goes!

My II Sense

My 2 Cents About My II Sense

I thought it would be best to begin this blog with a brief overview of what My II Sense is all about and where I want to take it in the weeks and months to come.

First and foremost, My II Sense is about relationships (Because it's ALL Relative!). Its function is to provide my personal opinions (My Two Cents) on how to relate to friends, family, coworkers and most importantly, to your Self in a practical and meaningful way. In other words, this blog is about how to deal with each other sensibly.

I welcome any and all suggestions for content. Additionally, if you would like to co-create content to share on one another's blogs/site I'm definitely interested in doing so!

Please note that any posts to this blog are meant for entertainment and informational purposes only. It is not my intent, nor the intent of any guest bloggers associated with My II Sense to diagnose or treat any ailment of the body or mind.

Thanks for reading and feel free to drop me a line to let me know what you think. Take care!