ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER THAN WORDS – NOT ALWAYS

Actions Speak Louder Than Words – Not Always

We have all heard that actions speak louder than words. You see it in memes, cartoons, videos, and GIFs all over social media. You hear it from family, friends, therapists, everyone. I have found that it is true the great majority of the time, but not always.

I know people who have encountered exceptions to the rule. It is unfortunate that people exist who have the ability to not only say the right words but perform the right actions all of the time until they get what they want or they are found out. Some of these people have the ability to do this for long periods of time. I have heard these people called a narcissist, psychopath, or sociopath. No matter what they are called, they are dangerous to those around them.

One thing that they are, though, is consistent throughout their life. They will continue their behavior with everyone they come in contact with and, since they see nothing wrong with how they treat people, they will continue to harm people. Once their deceits are revealed, everyone is shocked because they were so convincing.

My conversations with those who have dealt with people like this have quite a few repeated ideas for making sure that others are not deceived.

• Listen carefully.
• Watch closely.
• Compare those first two things.
• Listen to your intuition. Your intuition is almost always right.
• If they lie to others, they are also lying to you.
• No one is perfect! If you find someone who appears to be perfect, think really hard about that.
• No one will have all the same opinions, likes, and/or dislikes that you have.
• Don’t believe everything that you are told, especially if it seems unlikely and/or unreasonable.
• Ask questions. Ask these questions to them, their family, their friends. See if you get the same answers.
• Do your own independent research.

My hope is that none of you ever encounter someone like this. If you do, please remember that you are the victim and forgive yourself for falling for their trickery and deceit.