How do you know if someone is manipulating you? If you are innocent or gullible or both, the chances are that you may not get wind of it even after you have been manipulated for quite some time. The thing is: those who manipulate others are not only smart but also cunning. And, the odds are that they might also be sadistic by nature.
If someone is trying to create a guilty conscience in you in a situation where you have done nothing wrong and is trying to get you to do something, that is a sign which shows that the person in question is trying to manipulate you. Because, they almost make you feel that you are in the wrong and you will try to make amends by doing what the other person is trying to push you towards.
Beware of flattery. This is a ploy that is frequently employed by people who want to manipulate you. Accept praise with all humility and acknowledge it whole-heartedly. But when praise verges on flattery, it is time to get on the alert mode and start assessing as to what the other person is up to. The odds are that the flattery that the person is heaping on you is meant to hook you on to something that they want done.
If you catch them on their wrong foot, and confront them with what they have done, they might bring up something that you did in the past. By doing that, they divert your attention from what they did and before you know what happened the focus would have shifted on to what you did wrong.
Be careful in dealing with such people. Watch your words in your conversations with them. And, don’t ever share your secrets with them. If you do, they will use your own words against you and you will find yourself cursing yourself for having shared your secrets with them. The irony is that you will find yourself defending your actions for which you owe nobody any explanation in the real sense of the word. They use this trick to get themselves off the hook.
They could suddenly turn cold and distant and they may take away things that they might have given you or gifted to you when you don’t fall for their manipulative ways. That is their way of hitting back and making you feel uncomfortable.
They may say or do dreadful things and when you protest, they will try to get away by saying that it was all a joke and that you are overreacting to the situation. If you persist with your argument and try to pin them down to what they said, they may change gears and come back to you saying that what you think is not what they meant in the first place.
Learn to recognise manipulative people during your first contact with them and keep them at arm’s length. Don’t fall for their ploys or give in to their manipulative ways. Basically, they are negative people and spread negativity wherever they go. Keep away from them and keep away from their negativity by keeping them at bay if you want to lead a peaceful life.
