They Get Angry When You Set Boundaries

Don’t be surprised when people get upset at you when you’re going about the business of setting boundaries in your life. Often the first response you are met with is some form of rage. When you begin to take a stand for yourself and protect your own sacred space, they get angry when you set boundaries.

Bullies are used to having the upper hand and getting what they want. When somebody starts drawing lines in the sand, insisting that they not be crossed, this rocks the bully’s world. They are bound to respond negatively, out loud or more silently/passive aggressively. Either way, you know your decision to stand up for yourself has upset them.

If you’re dealing with someone who is angry because you’ve asserted your right to set and enforce a boundary, then chances are the responsibility lies with you for allowing this person to take advantage of your generosities or overpower you prior to having to set this boundary.

At first, the inconvenience may have been mild enough that you were able to overlook it, but after a while, it was clear that you were being taken advantage of, and now it’s time to take care of business.

If your bully is masterful, don’t be surprised when he or she responds with vile accusations of your being at fault, or insisting that you are the bully who is inconsiderate and trying control or manipulate the bully. This intimidation tactic will work sometimes to get the bully what he or she wants. Be prepared for it and don’t fall for it.

It’s not that these people are bad, wrong, or broken. They simply have not learned how to respect the rights of other people up ‘til now. By your setting of boundaries and sticking to them, you are helping the bullies learn that rights of others exist and should be respected. They may learn this valuable lesson from you and others who start to exercise their rights to their own sacred space over time.

So, how do you respond when someone expresses anger at your enforcement of a boundary?

Taking the high road would be not responding at all. Think of this as his or her protesting too much or acting out as his or her inner child tantrum runs wild. Maintain a compassionate state of mind and do not respond. Let the bully fully express his or her rage as much as possible but don’t take it personally.

Remember, the problem, here, is not with you, no matter what they say. Zip your lip, understand that he or she is doing the best he or she can do with the tools that he or she has at the time, and walk away with your boundary firmly in place.

There is nothing to feel bad about. Things are as they are, and people will respond in whatever way seems to fit their state of mind at the time. That’s the way it is. And if someone doesn’t respect your right to set and adhere to a boundary you’ve set, that’s on them, not on you.

The setting of boundaries is one of the methods you can use to keep from losing your energy. Take it back and keep people from draining your energy by limiting the control that bullies, toxic friends, or energy vampires might have had over you.

Bullies and Their Victims

If you are attracting bullies (predators and less than desirable people who may be predisposed to victimizing you), it might be a good idea to take a look at what you might be doing to attract the attention of a bully and ultimately become a potential target.

Actually, when you think of bullying, your mind takes you back to the school yard, and media attention is being given to bullying among our youth today and its effect on our society. The truth is, it’s been going on for a very long time before all this media attention and the bullies of our youth, are now up to their same old tricks in adulthood.

Among adults, bullies are likely to most commonly rear their ugly heads in the workplace. Their attention is piqued by the same things as adults as they were in their youth, their radar is seeking out people who they do not like (for whatever reason) or are threatened in some way by.

Predators often look for good people who they feel compelled to take down a notch. They might feel threatened by your peace, cheerfulness and/or success and after noticing you think, “Oh, they think they’re so blessed, or better than anyone else, someone needs to teach them a lesson.” And they take it upon themselves to deliver your reality check.

From the point of view of the predator, this is their purpose in life, levelling the playing field and knocking well-doers off their pedestals, Even though the rest of us don’t see ourselves that way, this is how we are viewed by predatory bullies, as they are seeking out those who they could victimize or destroy next.

They are never satisfied by bullying one person. If you’ve been bullied and the bullying has come to an end, it’s not because the bully has stopped bullying, it only means his attention has been focused on a new potential victim, and if bored, the bully may come back to you, if you’re beginning to regain your composure and they feel you’re in need for another attitude adjustment.

So, you might be a potential target if you’re good at what you do, and may be better than them. They may see you as a potential threat to their success, or you may be what stands between him or her and their next promotion. Bullying coworkers is how they basically eliminate the competition. If they can discredit you by sabotaging you and/or your work to make you look bad, makes them shine in comparison. Taking out the competent competition at any cost is an effective tactic for the workplace bully. New hires at work always get the once-over by the workplace bully who can quickly evaluate the new employee’s potential to offer real value to the company organization. The newbies are easier to take out prior to establishing themselves and creating relationships. Inexperienced or older employees are also potential workplace prey.

If you are popular, successful and are well liked, you will find yourself a potential target, especially if the bully is lacking in self esteem or social status. Anyone who is more attractive, talented, has a natural inclination to be respected or celebrated by peers is seen as a potential threat and must be “taught a lesson.” If you’re getting attention – attention that the bully feels he or she is more entitled to – then, you may be at risk of becoming his or her next victim. They feel as though, if they cannot be the recipient of such attention, no one else will either… Not for long, anyway.

Intolerance fuels the fire of the predatory bully who sets out to humiliate anyone who does not share similar values or lifestyles as the bully. Folks that maintain high moral values and integrity are likely to become targets. Why? Because the bully cannot accomplish such feats or live an integrous life. The only way to make themselves look better is to force the perceived, “better than thou” target to fail (or at least to make them look the fool or failure to anyone that might be appreciative of their authentic integrity). These “goody goodies” also make outstanding targets because they are less likely to defend themselves, retaliate or fight back if attacked.

Let’s face it, these predators are small-minded and poor examples of being anything to aspire to become, but they are very effective at what they do best: decimating their victims. They harbor deep-seated inadequacies and jealousy that create their need to destroy others as the only means they know of to make themselves feel (or look) better.

More often than not, bullies do possess the talent and skills to be massively successful without aggressively laying waste to anyone or anything that stands in their way, if they could only use their powers for good, but their ego, insecurity and envious nature overrides the thought of doing the work necessary with their integrity intact.