The Difficult Person Test

Greetings all!

I was recently thinking about John Donne's quote that "No man is an island entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main." We do not exist in a vacuum, and research shows that healthy relationships with others are built upon respect, kindness, compassion, and reciprocity. 

Image from 

https://pixabay.com/illustrations/plane-sea-ocean-island-away-shark-4598718/

We probably all know people we consider difficult, and no doubt sometimes WE are difficult people ourselves. So how do we play nice to get along with others? Sometimes it is knowing what NOT to do!

Take this interesting Difficult Person Test HERE to find out where you are on these seven traits that might put you at odds with other people: 

Grandiosity - Do you believe you are better than others?

Aggressiveness - Do you behave rudely and with hostility toward others?

Callousness - Do you lack empathy or concern for others? Do you make others feel uncomfortable?

Dominance: Do you put on airs of superiority and talk down to others?

Manipulativeness: Do you take others for granted and exploit them to derive benefits for yourself?

Risk-taking: Do you engage in risky behavior for the sake of experiencing thrills?

Suspicion: Do you harbor a strong distrust of others? Are you reluctant to open up?

The test is available in several languages, with no sign-up/personal information required. There are 35 statements, which you rank from “I Disagree” to “I agree”, for example:

• People do what I want them to because they are afraid of me.
• Other people’s emotions are their problem, not mine.
• I like telling people what to do.
• I keep track of sensitive information that can be used to hurt people at a later time.
• Others consider my lifestyle wild and exciting.
• I am a unique individual who deserves special treatment.
• I often hesitate to confide in others.

I liked the test, even though I expected the result to be longer than a 1-sentence conclusion but as I was going through the questions, I used them as a quick internal check-in to confirm my own values. How do I treat others? How do I want to be treated? 

Also, the questions made me think about behaviors people might exhibit that will label them as "difficult" people.  But we have no idea what they are going through. Perhaps they are not difficult people but just people going through a difficult time? So let's be kind to others and to ourselves!

Sources:

• https://www.idrlabs.com/difficult-person/test.php
• https://www.wellandgood.com/difficult-person-test/amp/
• https://web.cs.dal.ca/~johnston/poetry/island.html

What did you think? Drop me a line!