by Olivia Kay

Created on: March 21, 2009

We all must admit it, at one time or another we've come across someone that we simply don't see eye to eye with or cannot tolerate for whatever reason. With over 6 billion people inhabiting the Earth, all with unique personalities, it's inevitable that there will be some people out there that we dislike. However, often we must co-exist with these people either at work, school, in our community, in an organization that we belong to, or in vast other areas of our lives, so it's important that we are able to develop a way to tolerate those individuals we dislike and at the very least, treat them with the respect and dignity that every human being deserves.

Now comes the hard part... how exactly do we do this?

The first and foremost thing to try and do is to view each and every day of our lives positively, including interactions we have with those people we happen to dislike. It's very important to treat others the way that we want to be treated ourselves, so as much as we feel we can't stand certain people, it's important that we are as friendly and respectful to them as we are to those people that we get along with. Don't get me wrong, you don't have to be friends with everyone out there, but it's important to at least be civil. By starting to treat those we don't like with more respect and dignity than we have in the past, it is likely that they will eventually return the favor.

It's likely that we dislike certain people because of how they currently treat us or how they have treated us in the past. Although we sometimes have valid reasons for these thoughts, sometimes these thoughts are based on misconceptions or misunderstanding, more times than we actually realize. If we actually took some time to try and analyze why we dislike someone, we may realize that are reasons are really not as important as we once thought. Although it may be difficult, it may also be helpful to seek out an opportunity to talk to those we dislike and try and work out our differences, we are sometimes surprised to find out that we actually have more in common with these people than our initial perceptions allowed us to realize. By taking this step, we sometimes gain new friends or important acquaintances.

In conclusion, keep in mind that although there are always going to be some people that we like more than others that it's always right to treat everyone we come in contact with, with the respect and dignity that we desire for ourselves. By doing this and keeping a positive attitude, we might learn to appreciate what we have in common with others rather than simply focusing on the things we don't have in common with those around us.

Learn more about this author, Olivia Kay.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.