‘Want to know how to stop a bully? Here are the mind hacks you need to know about.
If you don’t learn the tricks to stop them in their tracks, bullies will continue to steamroll you until you have no self-esteem left.
Therefore, in this post, you will learn how to stop a bully by using clever mind hacks almost no one thinks about.
Once you learn all about these mental tips and tricks, you will be better able to more confidently counter bullies each time they attack.
This post is all about how to stop a bully so that you can spare your self-esteem and dignity from being raked over the coals.
How to Stop a Bully
To stop a bully from bullying you doesn’t only take physical strength. It takes a lot of mental power as well. Remember that bullies are mostly bluff.
To call their bluff, you must know what to expect and be ready for it. Therefore, before we get into the hacks, let’s first talk about the reactions you should expect from your bully and where it comes from.
7 Things That Happen When You Call a Bully’s Bluff
When you finally stand up to a bully and call out their abuse, these are the reactions you should expect.
1. They’ll try to avoid the subject.
They’ll change the subject to an irrelevant topic. Moreover, they’ll do it while appearing to be busy doing a task. Females are notorious for this trick.
2. They’ll become irate and go on a tirade.
They may even yell and curse at you. They may turn it back on you and accuse you of having paranoia. Moreover, they may call you mentally unstable, a crybaby, or any other label that discredits you.
However, realize that anyone who becomes this defensive only looks desperate and afraid. Know that this is just another dead giveaway.
Why? Because most bullies get highly defensive when they’re afraid they’re busted. They will get loud. They will scream, yell, and pound their fists, curse, and swear when they fear exposure.
However, don’t let this scare you because the dramatics and theatrics they display only mean that the bullies are desperate!
3. How to Stop a Bully:
They will lay guilt trips on you.
For instance, if a fake friend is stabbing you in the back and you call them out on it, you’re likely to hear the following.
“Well, if you were my friend, you wouldn’t believe XYZ”
“If you were a true friend to me, you wouldn’t even question my loyalty.”
Don’t buy that garbage. The person is just trying to make you feel guilty. Or they’re trying to intimidate you into silence.
If your so-called friend was the only person you told any secrets to, then you can bet that they’re guilty. Moreover, if enough people tell you that the person is saying things behind your back, they’re likely telling the truth.
4. They will escalate the harassment.
Bullies do this to either punish you or intimidate you and shut you down. Again, understand that the bully is afraid of being exposed and facing accountability.
Moreover, they fear losing face. So, your bully will stop at nothing to silence you.
5. They will justify themselves.
- “If you didn’t always make trouble, I wouldn’t have had to hurt you!”
- “If you weren’t so ditzy, I wouldn’t give you such a hard time!”
- “You made me do it because you always do this when you should do that!”
- “If you would just do this, I wouldn’t have to do that!”
- “You won’t shut up, so you deserve it!”
Again, don’t believe a word of it! Continue calling them out. You must protect yourself by speaking just as loud and with just as much conviction as the bully.
Therefore, make plenty of noise because the wheel that squeaks loudest gets the grease!
6. How to Stop a Bully:
The bully will slander you.
Again, understand that this bully is afraid of being exposed. Therefore, they spread rumors and lies to discredit you.
Also, they do it to distract others from their appalling behavior by making you look bad. ‘You see?If the bully can make you look bad and turn everyone else against you, they reap several benefits.
- The bully can intimidate you into silence and avoid any future risks of exposure.
- They can discredit you.
- The bully can make themselves look like the victim and gain sympathy from other people.
- They can successfully cut you off from any support you might otherwise receive.
- The bully gets the green light to bully you again later.
- They get to move up the social ladder and win more friends and allies.
- The bully gets the satisfaction of maintaining power, domination, and control over you.
Like the old quote goes, “Accuse the other side of that which you are guilty.”
Slander is designed to protect bullies from being exposed and shift blame onto you. People have used this tactic since the beginning of time!
So, don’t shut up no matter what! Continue to call out the bullies’ behavior!
7. They’ll stop talking to you and begin talking about you.
If you have a bully who’s a fake friend and you bust them, they’ll stop talking to you. However, once they quit talking to you, they’ll talk about you to justify themselves to others.
Here is what they’ll likely tell them.
- “She’s unstable.”
- “He’s just mad because I called him out!”
- “She’s so fake.”
- “She’s too sensitive.”
- “She doesn’t want to admit when she’s wrong.”
- “I was just trying to help them.”
- “She’s just jealous of me because… ”
Again, this person is exposing themselves through their behavior. Therefore, see this as a giveaway and have no more to do with them.
How to Stop a Bully:
Here are all the hacks you can use.
1. See your bullies’ most vicious attacks as a sign of fear and desperation.
Have you ever wondered why bullies are so aggressive with you when they could care less about you? When someone doesn’t care a lick about you, they show no emotion, positive or negative. In other words, they’re indifferent.
However, when the bully is aggressive, it shows that they are bothered by something about you. It could be something you said, did, or conveyed. In fact, it may be your very presence that bothers the person.
Whatever the case may be, there’s something about you that’s motivating the attacks. However, realize this.
It’s not that they care one iota about you. What they do care about is the possibility of your taking your power back from them. The bully is also afraid of you becoming independent of their opinions of you.
Most bullies go into panic mode when you stand up to them. Moreover, they really lose it when you stand up to them confidently.
This is because your bullies are scared to death that they’re losing power over you. Any time you call a bully’s bluff, you automatically put them in the weaker position.
Bullies know this and it drives them batty!
2. How to Stop a Bully:
Maintain a healthy and positive sense of self.
Don’t lose sight of your worth. Find ways to maintain your confidence. And, how you do this is to know what motivates your bully to attack you.
Knowing why your bullies do what they do is the best way to preserve a healthy self-esteem when you’re under siege.
3. Refuse to accept your bullies’ definition of you.
And this goes no matter how powerful or influential they may seem. After all, they’re only people just like you.
To accept someone else’s definition of you, you must first discard your own. When you allow bullies to dictate your inner reality, you lose bits and pieces of yourself.
Also, little by little, you lose the awareness of your emotions each time you allow them to do it. Then, you eventually grow numb.
Many targets fall for the garbage bullies feed them because there’s more to countering the attacks than words or fists. It also takes mind power.
Therefore, never let anyone else define you. Stop caring what people think.
Bullies may think they know you and they may attempt to define who you are. But only you know the definition of who you are.
By trying to tell you who you are, your bullies attempt to force you to replace your definition of yourself with theirs. Moreover, they try to play God.
So, stop allowing your bullies fool you into thinking that they know you better than you know yourself.
4. How to Stop a Bully:
Stand up to bullies, even if you’re afraid to.
When a bully tries to tell you what you are, you can stand with confidence and say, “No, I’m not. You are.” Then, you can walk away with more pride in yourself because you stood up to them.
Moreover, if the bully challenges you to a fist fight, don’t back down. There’s nothing wrong with hitting back if someone strikes you first.
Even if someone doesn’t hit you and gets in your face, you must assume that they’re getting ready to physically attack you. In this situation, offense is the best defense.
Knock the ever-loving hell out of them.
5. Have a clear vision of your value as a human being.
Know beyond a shadow of a doubt who you are and that you’re a great person who doesn’t deserve shabby treatment.
This means having a crystal-clear understanding of who you are. Moreover, it means know what you will and will not put up with.
6. Keep company only with strong people who are positive influences in your life.
Only associate with people who consistently validate and affirm your positive qualities. Keep company with those who know the good you bring to this world.
On the other hand, refuse to have anything to do with those who are toxic. Any time someone makes you feel bad, walk away and stay away.
It’s okay to be selective in who you let into your life. This is how you protect your mental health from unsavory people.
7. How to Stop a Bully:
Hold onto your principles and convictions.
Hold onto your standards. Moreover, stand up for your beliefs, and convictions. Be true to yourself and follow your heart. And do it boldly and confidently.
Don’t be afraid to think critically. In short, have the courage to be different.
This is how you protect your mind from bullies. Your mind and your thoughts are free! Keep them that way!
8. Trust your gut.
Listen to your gut feeling because it will always tell you the truth. Therefore, if something doesn’t feel good, your gut will tell you.
Remember that the sensations of the body never lie. And when something feels off about a person, move away from them.
This is one of the ways you protect yourself from bullies.
9. Set and enforce your boundaries.
This goes back to number four. Set your boundaries. Then, enforce those boundaries if a bully ever crosses them.
If a bully verbally attacks you, don’t ignore it. Counter that attack with a good burn so that the bully thinks twice before messing with you again.
And if they physically attack you, haul off and knock them on their ass.
However, staying strong physically is only part of the battle. Maintaining a strong mind is the very foundation of self-defense and protection. Put them together and you’ll be able to stop a bully from ever bullying you again.
This post is all about how to stop a bully and all the ways to do it so that you can protect your self-esteem and live in peace.
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1. How to Stop a Bully from Bullying You: 7 Powerful Strategies
