How to deal with stubborn people?

Question

Everyone has met them. Only I have met too many of them in my life: people who refuse to budge from their seat in the movie theater even after you politely say that you cannot see the screen, people who refuse to see things from your viewpoint, people who refuse to cooperate with law enforcement, teachers or doctors. So, how do I deal with these stubborn people?

Answer 1

Put yourselves in their shoes. What is causing them to be so stubborn and resistant to change? When you see things from their perspective, you actually start to sympathize with them, even if you do not fully agree with their views.

When you start seeing things from their viewpoint, decide the best way to deal with them. For instance, if you know a mother who refuses to breastfeed a child, find out why she feels that way. If you find out that she has health problems, suggest alternative ways that she can provide nourishment to her child. If you simply call her stupid and say that she is stubborn, you are not dealing with her stubbornness. You want to start by looking at the situation through her eyes.

Answer 2

Get a stubborn person to listen to your views. You may be surprised that some stubborn people are actually good at listening, but that depends on the individual. If the stubborn person is not good at listening, try another technique.

Answer 3

Threaten them. Some people are so stubborn and rooted in their beliefs that it is necessary to use force or threats. Never threaten violence or ill harm on another person, though. Look for ways to show the person that you are serious and not kidding around.

Answer 4

Control yourself first and foremost. Stubborn people are guaranteed to make us angry a few times. Avoid getting into a confrontation because that accomplishes nothing. Control your emotions and walk away from a situation that could get heated. The last thing you want is to plant bite marks on a person you are trying to help.

With stubborn people, sometimes the only thing you can do is walk away. However, try every course of action that could possibly make the person less stubborn. If the person refuses to lend you a pen for a test, even after you ask a few times, simply walk away and do not make the situation worse. There are some people you cannot change no matter how hard you try. So instead of insisting on learning how to deal with stubborn people, it might be important for you to learn to give up.