Seven Phrases People Use to Manipulate You

Are you one of those people who trust someone until they give you a reason not to, or do they have to earn your trust?

No matter which way you lean, we all tend to let people into our lives with the goal of trusting them. Whatever your baseline, trust is vulnerable.

Hopefully, your gut instinct will guide you. You know, that feeling you get when something or someone feels off. That feeling is everything, and oh, how you kick yourself when you ignore it, and it turns out to be correct.

Did you ignore it because others said you were being paranoid or overthinking? Maybe this will help because, like you, I've been there.

OR are you the two-faced manipulator? Well, here's to calling you out.

According to the Your Tango website, these are phrases people use to manipulate you for self-serving reasons.

DON'T TAKE IT SO PERSONALLY, YOU TAKE EVERYTHING SO PERSONALLY

Don't you hate this one? It's truly dismissing your legitimate feelings and blaming you for your feelings while minimizing them.

When truly phony people demand that you stop taking things personally, they try to control your feelings while minimizing their validity. They flip the narrative, turning their harmful behavior into your problem to solve.

There's no accountability or apology for hurting you with this statement.

I DIDN'T SAY THAT, I NEVER SAID THAT

It's hard to find any phrase that defines classic gaslighting then this. It's all about distorting the truth to lead you toward self-doubt.

This tactic distorts reality and makes you question your perception of events. It's a classic form of gaslighting, making you question reality by rewriting what happened.

I'M NOT LIKE EVERYONE ELSE, I'M DIFFERENT FROM MOST PEOPLE

Oh, please, how fake is this!? This tactic is to manipulate you into thinking you're special. Who doesn't want to feel special, you know? In reality, this phrase is all about gaining trust for self-serving purposes.

This phrase is meant to evoke trust, but it's a clear message to walk the other way, fast. While it's easy to doubt your intuition, this phrase is a glaring sign that the person you're talking to isn't authentic.

I DIDN'T MEAN TO HURT YOU

Talk about NOT taking accountability for hurting someone. This phrase is one of the most popular with phony people. There's no apology; rather, this is the fake human saying they didn't mean to hurt you, so you shouldn't be hurt, thus blaming you.

They're more concerned with the optics of being forgiven than the fact that they hurt someone else. This phrase is a clear example of performative kindness. It's a hollow way for phony people to pretend they're empathic when they don't care.

TRUST ME, I WOULDN'T LIE TO YOU, I NEVER LIE

Talk about a red flag. Anything spoken in absolute terms is silently screaming deceit.  Overemphasize honesty is merely to get you to let your guard down so these fake people can manipulate you.

The phrase is deceitful at its core, designed to convince you that a fake person is being sincere. Truly phony people are hiding who they are.

I HATE DRAMA

LOL, this one makes me laugh because anyone who says this while trying to stir things clearly thrives on the chaos they pretend to avoid.

If you hate drama, you don't talk about how much you hate it, you instead take steps to avoid it or remove yourself from a situation or conversation filled with drama.

More than just welcoming it, they actively stir the pot: They spread gossip and spill secrets told to them in confidence to feel in the know and get attention.

Remember, "when drama comes into contact with neutrality, it loses all momentum."

I DON'T USUALLY SAY THIS BUT...

Simply put, qualifying statements are often deceptive. Fake people use this phrase to soften the blow of hurtful comments and true beliefs to their core.

By using this phrase, they're telling on themselves: In fact, they do say things like this often.

Stay alert, trust your instincts, and always trust your eyes and ears.