They were a perfectly nice couple on the surface of things, and when I first befriended them they were happy to share advice and tell me about their lives. But as time went on I noticed that they liked to take digs at people who had something they didn’t. If a person we knew went on a fancy vacation, they snarked about it. They loved reminding people in their circle who had advanced academic degrees that there was more to life than being “book smart.” (Neither of them went to college.) If someone purchased a new vehicle or a new dress that was obviously expensive, they loved openly criticizing the wisdom of the purchase. They seemed to have a need to reassure themselves that no matter what someone else was or had, that somehow they were “better” than them. And that meant that they were perfectly happy to take swipes at their friends to make sure their need to feel superior was assuaged. Of course our friendship fizzled once they realized I wasn’t interested in playing the game with them, nor was I going to live my life trying to avoid their approbation.
Beating Resentment and the Yardstick People
Beating Resentment and the Yardstick People
Beating Resentment and the Yardstick People
They were a perfectly nice couple on the surface of things, and when I first befriended them they were happy to share advice and tell me about their lives. But as time went on I noticed that they liked to take digs at people who had something they didn’t. If a person we knew went on a fancy vacation, they snarked about it. They loved reminding people in their circle who had advanced academic degrees that there was more to life than being “book smart.” (Neither of them went to college.) If someone purchased a new vehicle or a new dress that was obviously expensive, they loved openly criticizing the wisdom of the purchase. They seemed to have a need to reassure themselves that no matter what someone else was or had, that somehow they were “better” than them. And that meant that they were perfectly happy to take swipes at their friends to make sure their need to feel superior was assuaged. Of course our friendship fizzled once they realized I wasn’t interested in playing the game with them, nor was I going to live my life trying to avoid their approbation.