How do you deal with a difficult person?

Oh my god. You are working with my mother in law? I thought she retired? Seriously, I know what you mean and you have to try to keep things light and superficial and vague with that type, for your own sanity.

If this person is your boss then do it how they want. I own a landscaping company and respect the tools, equipment and plants. My girlfriend does not and it bothers me. LOL I am probably "difficult" to her. Things need to be a certain way. An example: I tell everyone to try not to rip the bags when putting them in the truck. What do they do? Throw the bags into the truck however they wish. This rips several holes in the bags. When we carry the bags mulch leaks out. Then someone has to go back and pick the mulch out of 100 yards of grass. I don't pay for it. The customer does. But I have concerns and want to provide the best service for the lowest price. So you have to do it my way. Yesterday it was raining. We got grass seed. While was carefully placing my bags into the truck someone who knows better threw a bag of grass seed into the truck. So now there is 2 problems. 1 We have seed in a moist environment with a hole in the bag. It might mold. 2 There is 100 pounds on top of a weedeater. We didn't get to the job because it was too wet. The bag with the hole is $60 for 25 pounds. If the weedeater would not have worked I would have had to leave the job site and buy another. I don't want other people making me look unprofessional. If the person is a co-worker, just ignore them and do things your own way to your employer's specifications. =)

I agree with the person above me. Keep a blog about everything this person and you disagree on and ask a higher up how to handle the situation. Someone in HR should have a solution. Im sorry - can you ignore her?

A friend of mine had this happen a few years ago where she worked & everything she could think of by reading books on the topic, taking courses, dealing with HR & doing their suggestions--DIDN'T work! So one day she snapped & told this woman off! And Badly!! So much so, she got called into a supervisor's office and asked wtf? But the thing is my friend had smartly kept a diary of all the things she had tried on what dates & who suggested them. She kept notes on all her meetings with HR, she had basically a full investigative report for this issue. So when she was the one getting into trouble, she produced it & said read this & tell me what I should do next other than quit? They fired the woman from that dept or rather transferred her to a different location in the company, my friend kept that job for another year & in the end left to upgrade her education. So my suggestion would be to start this type of folder if you haven't already done so. And then produce it to HR with "what can I do" now...vs. going in more circles.