It never goes over well putting your priorities over those of someone else.

People often want their needs put in the front of the line (read my blog now). They expect people to cater to them immediately and are ungrateful (leave a great comment and tell everyone how funny I am). They are cantankerous or belligerent of other people’s feelings, emotions or time (Do it now!!)

It’s unrealistic to think people want to stop what there doing and place someone else in the center of attention even if it’s someone you love. Most people are not sitting around waiting for a coworker or spouse to walk into their world and ask a question or to drop everything that they are doing in order to cater to their needs. Married couples do this too. “Honey, stop getting ready for your day and help me find my keys because after all my priorities are first.” Imagine how a statement like this would impact your relationship. We may not use a statement as profound as this, but the sentiment being given could be received as the same.

office space

Interrupting or self-prioritizing

This involves not allowing people to finish sentences or walking away when someone is trying to explain something because hey, I got it. This could also be considered cutting someone off mid-sentence and society thinks it’s just plain rude. This type of behavior might be normal for a child or a teen (not my child) but not an adult.

1 Corinthians 13:4-5

Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful.

How do we over come this? Awareness of behavior is key. It’s not going to kill us to stand there for a couple minutes smiling and trying to enjoy the presence of other people. The conversation will have a natural lull giving an opportunity to either change the topic or interject a new point of view without seeming to force the conversation into a direction that you want to control. When making a request start with this statement, “When you have the chance, could you help me_______________.” This will go a lot further than demanding.