How to Deal With a Control Freak

Have you ever felt like you're surrounded by either a single person, or sometimes several people, all of who want things to work their way, because if it doesn't, they just cannot handle it. If you've been through it, you know that it can get pretty exasperating!

Sometimes equated with being perfectionists, or even narcissists, control freaks are those people who like everything being done on their terms. They do not care about what someone else has to say. As long as they can call the shots, that's all that matters.

People who are categorized as control freaks also feel lost and directionless when they have nobody to show any sort of control over. Those were not only just a couple of the symptoms of a control freak, but also the ones that help distinguish them the easiest.

The sad part about the entire situation though, is that the people who have to deal with control freaks, also have to go through leading quite a troubled life, because living with a control freak can render life pretty difficult in most situations. Let us understand some ways to keep a control on your own life.

Dealing with a control freak for a spouse is one such situation. Whether it's about a wife or a husband, fact remains that it is a dicey situation no matter what.

In case of most control freak spouses, there is a possibility that they do not realize that they are being controlling. For several people it could very simply border on being protective about a loved one. This trait is in fact, more likely to be found in a control freak husband, rather than the wife.

Although it could seem like it's draining the energy out of you, and there may be moments when you feel like you want to give up, it must be given some serious thought. Sounds irrational? It could be! But there's no telling that you will be able to go on without the controlling methods of your spouse.

For all you know, it was that very control (and maybe even discipline of a sort) that kept you together. It is always best to try fixing certain situations before going all out and picking the more drastic way out.

Attempting to talk things through, or maybe even using an approach other than this could maybe help. If none of them work, you could consider the stronger decision.

But what do you do when you have a boss who cannot handle things not happening his way? The honest truth is you are caught in between a "devil and the deep blue sea" kind of scenario. It's one of those no-win places to be in! But here's how you can deal with it.

If you have an uber controlling boss, there is no telling that he / she probably did not too. In fact, that could well be a reason for the controlling behavior exhibited. Aping someone unintentionally could be one of the reasons for it too. As strange as it may sound, it could also result from low self-esteem in comparison to his employees.

Despite the authoritative position they are at, very often, they don't know how to deal with it, and that sometimes leads to a backlash like an overdose of control. An absolute contradiction to what was just said, this control could also stem from a "superiority complex".

That apart, here's what you should do... For starters, be diplomatic. There is no space for emotions to get in the way of things at a work place. There is also no space for ego. It doesn't matter how much you hate the boss, work with a smile! Try being as communicative and sympathetic to the situation as possible.

If nothing works, as a last resort, you could head to someone who is in the position to help you, and do so without a second's thought. All said and done, you also must decide how much is too much. While being a boss comes with certain liberties, it most certainly does not permit being a dictator to no end.

If it's an old friendship, there should be some way that you can deal with it. Maybe you could try talking things through with the friend, and first begin with finding out why the sudden need for control. (If it is sudden, that is).

If the friend is a new friend, and doesn't understand, or even worse, chooses not to understand, there wasn't much of a friendship there in the first place, anyway. Coming back to the old friendship, try finding out what is it that seems to have gone wrong.

If there truly is a problem, acknowledge it, and try to fix it. If there isn't any real issue, it could be possible that over time, your friend and you have just drifted apart, and that is leading to some sort of insecurity in your friend, thus creating the need to control everything.

If the reason there seems legit, spend some quality time with your friend, and hopefully things will get sorted, but if problems still persist and become too hard to handle, as unfortunate as it may seem, it may be best to part ways.

Hopefully, the aforesaid will act as some help the next time you're dealing with a total control freak. Just make sure to deal with the situation with care, because situations like this are never easy to handle.