How do you handle being disrespected by inferiors?
When I say inferiors I mean people who fall short of you when it comes to any of a number of different categories. It could be moral character, you are a kinder and more considerate person than them. It could be socially, you have more personality and are better at interacting with people. It could be intelligence or talent/skill level in any arena.
I am regularly faced with such individuals disrespecting me both directly and indirectly. I would imagine everyone is to some degree whether they realize it or not. It is perhaps the biggest annoyance in my life and I have had great difficulty in learning how to handle it. When I was younger and less confident, I either assumed I deserved it or didn’t realize I was even being disrespected, or I simply didn’t have the balls to stand up for myself. Now I know who I am and what I have to offer, and refuse to stand for it. Sometimes the perpetrator doesn’t even realize they are being disrespectful or that they are in no position to judge/condescend you.
Some examples of disrespectful behavior I have experienced would be:
At my job, a coworker who has nothing over me aside from seniority and perceived wisdom/life experience regularly tries to disparage me and present me as being a subpar worker or inadequate. I am regularly told by customers that they deliberately come when they know I am working because I am faster and better and my job as well as more friendly and personable.
In social situations, a guy who realizes I am better looking and have more personality than him will try to cock block me or belittle me in front of women. This is somewhat expected but no less infuriating, fortunately I am pretty good at embarrassing such twats.
In my personal circle there is one guy who is sort of socially awkward and is only really around because he is the brother of one of the other guys. He regularly tries to take jabs at me in our group chat and tries to turn the other members against me behind my back. This is probably my number one problem regarding this subject right now, as it is extremely disruptive despite the fact that he has little to no influence on the other guys’ opinion of me. I always fight back and put him in his place, yet he persists. It is clearly a power move, but he has no chance of succeeding. Just a pebble in my shoe.
How do you handle this? I almost always use my words to fire back and dismantle their efforts. Often as in the above cases it stems from jealousy or attempts to make themselves look/feel better.