7 Signs You are Passive Aggressive
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Passive aggression is a behavioral condition in which a person does not express anger directly but channels his or her hostility in a subtle and latent form. Such type of behavior can cause a lot of conflict, because anger keeps piling inside a person as it is not vented out or discussed. Here are a few signs of passive aggressive behavior.
1. You always mumble under your breath
If you have a habit of agreeing to someone on their face but venting out your anger after that person has left, it could be a sign of being passive aggressive. People with such behavioral traits often slyly express their anger by muttering curse words under their breath but never in front of anybody. Fuming with anger and mumbling in your own head without being verbal is one of the giveaways of being passive aggressive.
2. You procrastinate work for no reason
You could be a passive aggressive person if you manipulate a situation by procrastinating work to show anger. For example, if the person you are angry at asks you to finish some work, you will deliberately procrastinate it to irritate him or her. Procrastination and delay are common techniques of defiance used by passive aggressive people.
3. You give false compliments to others
Passive aggressive people can be unfathomable because they resort to lying as a means of venting their anger. Such people go to the extent of lying even while giving compliments so that the other person never realizes their anger until it is too late. You can recognize signs of passive aggression in yourself if you have a habit of giving false compliments to others only to go and speak ill about them behind their backs.
4. You sabotage other people’s work
Sabotaging other people’s work or plans is something that passive aggressive people are often known to do. Since they don’t vent their anger in the open, they find immense pleasure in taking revenge from people by sabotaging their work secretly. If you have done such a thing before or if you have had evil plans of doing something similar, you could be a victim of passive aggression.
5. You back out when you are needed the most
Passive aggressive people are known to smartly cause damage to other people by backing out when they are needed the most. For example, if you were a passive aggressive person, you would deliberately skip a meeting even if you knew that your contribution was going to be important and most needed. You would actually enjoy leaving your team members in a lurch and this would be your way of showing anger for them.
6. Sarcasm is your second language
People who are passive aggressive are known to be very comfortable using sarcasm in their day to day language. They find pleasure in expressing their disdain, scorn, contempt and anger for others by saying nasty things to them through sarcasm.
7. You have selective memory
If you are passive aggressive, you would have the habit of remembering and forgetting things conveniently. Passive aggressive people often use selective memory to escape a situation when they want to. They strategically act like they have remembered something important when they see that it could put another person in trouble.
