‘Want to know why people bully and the benefits bullies reap at your expense? Here are the things your bullies feel they have to gain from bullying you so that you can call it out and bust them.

If you’re a victim of bullying, you probably wonder what it is your bullies have to gain from bullying you. Therefore, here are the exact benefits your bullies get at your expense and what you can do to protect yourself.

In this post, you will learn why people bully and exactly what it is that motivates them.

Once you learn all about the psychological payoffs of bullying, you will be able to more clearly call out their behavior so that you will have a better chance of defending yourself.

This post gives you all the reasons why people bully so that you can know what motivates your bullies and call it out by name.

Why People Bully

Someone came to me with a burning question that I used to ask all the time. I am certain that millions of people worldwide have asked the same question, “Why do People Bully?”

There are many answers, and they all depend on the individual bully. Therefore, before we get into the reasons for bullying and the benefits bullies look for, let’s discuss three different types of bullies.

1. Spoiled, Coddled bullies with Narcissistic Personality Disorder.

These kinds of bullies bully because they are arrogant and overconfident. They truly believe that they are superior to you and better you and anyone else.

Therefore, they’ll stop at nothing to let you know who’s boss. You must understand that these creeps are self-entitled, self-serving, and have no empathy.

With these types, the ends always justify the means. They do everything possible to keep the spotlight on themselves and hog all the attention. Moreover, they consider themselves highly privileged.

Also, they’re jealous of anyone who outshines or outdoes them in any way. Why? Because they believe that any happiness, successes, accolades, and victories should be reserved for only them.

Therefore, if you have a talent that brings you recognition, look out! Because these bullies will punish you for it. And they will pull out all the stops to crush your self-esteem and kill your confidence to bring you down.

You’ll often find these people in the popular and preppy crowd at school. Also, they’ll be in the “Good Ole Boy” clique at work. Moreover, these bullies will often be jocks, cheerleaders, and sorority/fraternity nuts at school. They may also work in management or be one of the suck-ups at work.

2. Why People Bully:

Hurting and Victimized Bullies (Bully-Victims)

These bullies bully because they are being bullied themselves. The abuse could be happening either in the home, at school, in the workplace, or all three.

These aggressors feel powerless. Therefore, to reclaim some of the power that has been stripped away from them, they bully those even weaker than they are.

Bully-victims have a strong need to feel like they have control over something in their lives.

Here’s an example:

A child is yelled at by his parents, then he gets mad, goes outside, and kicks the dog. This is why I call this type of bullying, “Kicking the Dog.”

Moreover, no one wants to be at the bottom of the pecking order. As the age-old saying goes, “Shit rolls downhill and lands at the bottom.”

So, to stay off the bottom, these types will often find someone else to bully, so they don’t feel like they’re the ones stuck in the basement.

Just as people fight to stay on top of the social hierarchy, there are also those who fight just as hard to stay off the bottom. Hence, the reason victims of bullying often become bullies themselves.

3. Why People Bully:

Bullies who Are Followers, Drones, and Wannabes

These bullies are to be pitied because they are quite pathetic when you really think of it. This is because they will suck up to the in-crowd (the narc bullies).

Therefore, they do this by either bullying those lower on the social totem pole. Or, they’ll simply join the popular bullies in tormenting you.

Figuratively, when a person from the in-crowd tells them to jump. These wannabes will ask, “How high?” Moreover,  these people often become followers, minions, groupies, and flying monkeys.

They’ll do the dirty work of the bullies with narcissistic personality disorder. In other words, they’ll serve as their yes-men.

However, understand that these people are only kiss-butts and brown-noses. They’re only bully you hoping for acceptance into the popular crowd.  Also, they do it because they’re afraid of becoming the next target.

Different people bully for different reasons. When we can distinguish the reasons each bully bullies we can better prepare and protect ourselves.

Why people Bully:

What are the benefits Bullies gain at your expense?

Understand that the laws of human nature dictate that no one does anything without some sort of psychological payoff. Therefore, bullies reap several benefits at your expense if you’re a target. Here is a list of those benefits:

1. A sense of power

Simply put, bullies bully for power, control, and domination. Therefore, anytime a bully takes you down, they get a tremendous rush of power. They also become addicted to that rush.

This is why bullies never bully once. They always come back for more. It’s no different from having a drug addiction. The evil actions, cruelty, and power become a drug in and of themselves.

Also, as with any drug, the same tactics and frequency of bullying lose their potency after a while. Therefore, the bullies must escalate the torment to keep getting the rush they crave.

For example, when name-calling and verbally abusing you lose their thrill, your bullies will grow bored with it. Therefore, your bullies will often escalate the abuse.

They’ll resort to either cruel pranks, humiliation, or physical assault and battery to keep getting the rush they look for. It’s the same as when a junkie builds a drug tolerance and begins taking higher doses.

2. Why People Bully:

Popularity

Bullies bully because, sadly, many people think it’s cool or cute. Therefore, they see it as a means for increased social status.

‘You see? Bullying gives the bully lots of attention and visibility. Bullying isn’t only a way for bullies to exert power but it gains them the popularity they crave.

 And sadly, it works like a charm. The reason it works so well is that the bullies’ social status is increased, while yours is reduced.

Moreover,  having the respect and admiration of their peers is of more value to some people’s sense of self-worth than money and material wealth.

Although one can achieve elevated social status through wealth and material things, it can also be attainable though bullying if your bullies are dead broke.

On the other hand, if the bully does have money and material wealth, the social status he gets from bullying is just icing on the cake. In other words, it’s not something he feels he must do. It’s something he wants to do because he thinks it’s fun.

3. To Compensate for a shortcoming

We’ll use a lack of money and material wealth, for example.

Most bullies don’t have a lot of money. And these are the types who achieve social status through exploitation of your mistakes, flaws, and shortcomings.

Bullying is not a healthy way to achieve social status. Therefore, a healthy way of increasing one’s social ranking requires some type of achievement.

The achievement could be joining a positive movement or donating to a charity. However, one tiny mistake can instantly tarnish one’s reputation and all the good they’ve done.

The world is, sadly, quick to blame a person for any negative qualities or actions while slow to forgive or to give credit for good deeds. Moreover, bullies instinctively know this and take full advantage of it.

However, the only way that broke bullies can excel up the social hierarchy is by demeaning others. And they do it by taking the tiniest mistake you make, adding to it, and blowing it up to decrease your social ranking.

4. Why People Bully:

Superiority

Bullying gives the bully an appearance of strength. Moreover, it sends a message to you and others that he’s a badass, and that they’d be a fool to mess with him. The bully also gives the appearance that he’s top dog.

Therefore, your bullies will torture you to keep up that facade.

5. Attention and Sympathy

Many people do it to distract others’ attention away from their own behavior. Therefore, if the bully can make you look the devil reincarnate, people won’t pay so much attention to her evil deeds.

For example, if she picks a fight with you and you stand up to her, she can make you look like the villain. Afterwards, she gets to enjoy the attention and bask in the sympathy others give her.

6. Distraction from their own shortcomings

Bullies are experts at making you look weak and pathetic. If the bully can distract everyone else’s attention to your weaknesses, he can keep the spotlight off his own defects.

Why? Because if people expect to see trouble coming from a specific place, that’s where they’re going to look.

7. Why People Bully:

Projection of their own flaws onto someone else

Bullies have a flare for accusing you of the same deplorable shit that they do themselves. Therefore, if your bullies can make you look like the troublemaker, then they can go unpunished.

 Moreover, they can continue to attack you freely and with impunity. Again, this also takes the focus off their own misdeeds.

8. The satisfaction and gratification of seeing you suffer

Your bullies love to see you suffer. For them, your misery is entertainment and gives them a rush of power. In other words, just knowing that they can determine how you feel and how your day goes gives them a feeling of dominance.

Therefore, don’t give them the satisfaction. Be a waste of time and energy to them. The way to do this is to see your bullies for the weak wusses they really are.

Realize that bullies bully because they’re great big cowards. They have no persuasion skills. In fact, they have no redeemable qualities. Therefore,  the only way they cam be effective is to bully their way through life.

Keep this in the back of your mind.

9. To tighten the bonds in their group

By tormenting you, bullies garner support from others who are just like them and who share the same values. After all, bullying is most effective in group situations, where people unite to serve a certain objective.

Therefore, know that bullies never work alone. They always have people backing them.

Group bullying gives talentless bullies a sense of belonging. Also, it tightens the bonds among members of the group.

Furthermore, this collective bullying also makes them more successful in bringing you down than if the bullies worked alone.

Another advantage to group bullying is the mob mentality it produces. It’s a dark part of human nature that people conform and imitate the behaviors of other members of the group. Therefore, in groups, bullies have more power and can make a much bigger impact.

Bullies Never Work Alone, They’re Too Cowardly

10. Why people Bully:

They Can’t Achieve Social Power any other way.

Understand that people who bully others to achieve social gain can never achieve it any other way.

These types of people are the talentless, the lazy, and the incompetent. Moreover, they have no redeemable qualities, no personalities, and no real intelligence.

You must see these bullies exactly as they are – empty suits with zero substance. And, once you see them clearly, your confidence won’t take such a big hit when they come for you.

11. They See Bullying As An Aphrodisiac

That’s what bullying is to bullies, an aphrodisiac. In other words, it’s the only way these people can feel good. Again, hurting you is like a drug to them. It’s highly addictive because it gives them a massive rush of power.

You must understand that targeting others for bullying is how they find meaning in their lives. And the only excitement they can add to their meaningless lives is through mistreating you.

In short, bullies bully because they enjoy it.

People crave power, fame, notoriety, and influence- even the best of them. But most can get those through love, through their hobbies, jobs, talent, and creativity.

On the other hand, bullies don’t have these things going for them. Some might have jobs but aren’t satisfied in their positions. So, they abuse people instead.

And once you’re no longer available to them because you either quit or move away, the aphrodisiac isn’t there anymore. So, what will they do?

They’ll search for a new victim to get their next fix.  Moreover, they may even turn on one of their friends if they can’t find a target outside their peer group.

Why People Bully:

It’s Not You, It’s Them!

If you’re a target of bullies. You are not the one with the issues.

Your bullies are the ones who have the problems. They are the ones who are mentally unbalanced. Therefore, they are the ones who belong in mental institutions.

However, they only hide it behind their undermining and degrading of you and others. Realize that they’re only projecting their problems onto you.

Your bullies are using you as a distraction. And they have to work hard at it, which doesn’t make for a good life.

Always remember that, and their insults and stupidity won’t bother you as much. I promise you!

This post was about the reasons why people bully and where their abuse comes from so that you can know what bullies are really about and have more confidence in yourself when they come for you.

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