• passive-aggressive
    Featured

    Five Passive Aggressive Types To Disinvite From Your Life

    Proverbs says a lot about fools, but the uniting factor in all the different verses is the underlying assumption that you will deal with a lot of them. Some are easier to spot than others, usually because their mouth proclaims the news quite loudly. If this seems harsh, let me mitigate it by the admission that sometimes my own mouth has often robbed others of the illusion that I am among the wise. As a former passive aggressive (mostly) person, I have developed an eye for these types. Most often I meet them at work where passive-aggressive behavior is often honed to a fine art. After all, the group cc…

  • Controlling Behaviors

    Five Controlling Behaviors You Should Learn to Spot

    We all know people who exhibit controlling behaviors. In fact, when you mention control freaks in a group, it often elicits groans. Stories of crazy exes and former bosses start to come out. It turns afternoon special quickly. But they often exhibit controlling behaviors in everyday communication. Manipulation seems to come easier to some than others. Knowing how to spot it in yourself and others helps us self-correct. If we understand behavior, we can develop a strategy to prevent it. If we spot one in ourselves, we can stop and enter a relationship with more authenticity. If we learn to see it in others, we are less likely to be…

  • codependent behavior
    Codependent Behavior

    The Codependent Behavior that Kills Your Joy

    I spent most of my life thinking that codependent behavior was buying alcohol for alcoholics. I pictured a weak but loving person giving some drunk on the street a bottle of booze because at least the addict would be happy for a little while. Or maybe going to the bar, picking their loved one off the floor and taking them home, putting them to bed, only to do it again the next day. My ideas were mostly informed, I believe, by the movies. Turns out codependent behavior is a little more complicated. Turns out I didn’t just have codependent tendencies, but full-blown behaviors that needed to be addressed. So this…