Episode 59 – Dealing with Difficult People: What to Do When You’re the Only Adult in the Room
About this episode
Lori shares strategies for handling difficult people while maintaining emotional stability and professionalism.
#WorkMomSays dealing with difficult people isn’t about fixing them — it’s about protecting you. In this episode, Lori shares practical, emotionally intelligent strategies for handling challenging coworkers, clients, and bosses without losing your cool or your dignity. Through real-world examples, she explains how compassion, kindness, and emotional regulation can be powerful tools in business, why becoming “emotional Teflon” helps you stay calm under pressure, and how to set boundaries without becoming confrontational or tolerating abuse. She emphasizes staying grounded, solution-focused, and unbothered — so you can perform at a high level and be the adult in the room, even when others aren’t. Themes discussed in this episode Protecting your emotional regulation when dealing with difficult people Using compassion and kindness as professional tools (not weaknesses) Becoming “emotional Teflon” and not absorbing other people’s chaos Setting boundaries while staying calm, grounded, and professional Episode Highlights Time-stamped inflection points from the show 00:12 – Lori explains why this episode isn’t about fixing difficult people, but about protecting your emotional stability…
People in this episode
Host: Lori
Topics covered
- dealing with difficult people
- emotional regulation
- compassion in the workplace
- setting boundaries
- professionalism
Keywords
- emotional Teflon
- kindness
- boundaries
- solution-focused
- adult in the room
Mentioned in this episode
Books & works: Dealing with Difficult People: What, Work Mom Says Don’t Be an Idiot
More episodes of Work Mom Says®, Don't Be An Idiot!
- Episode 62 – Bulletproof: How to Take a Hit and Stay in the Game
- Episode 61 – WorkMomSays: You’re On Your Own. Good.
- Episode 60 – Confident, Fluent, and Wrong: AI & The New Workplace Trap
- Episode 58 – Still Standing: What 2025 Took, Taught, and Left Behind
- Episode 57 – Adulting with ADHD
- Episode 56 – How to Grow Your Grit (Even When You’re Tired of Trying)
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