6 Types of People Your Child Will Eventually Face in Life

While there are many different types of people in the world, there are a few strong personality types that your child will eventually face and may struggle with. Teach your kids at a young age how to peacefully converse with these 6 types of people.

My oldest son is on the “B” team for baseball. This refers to the second team, the team for the kids that didn’t make the top team (the “A” team).

He came home from school and said that one of the boys from the “A” team said he couldn’t play with them at recess because he was on the “B” team.

While he didn’t care because he loves his team and has the natural ability to blow off situations like that, I was taken back by the level of snark in that comment.

Though we can try our very hardest, we can’t prepare our children for every experience in life.

We know they will have moments that give them the warm and fuzzy feelings. Inevitably, there will also be moments when they feel that they can’t go on. And then there will be many moments in between.

Kids are shaped by all of these moments – good, bad, and ugly.

There are, however, two things we can do to prepare our kids to be resilient and functioning humans.

First, we can do activities that literally hard-wire our kid’s brain for happiness in life. While these things won’t always make them happen right now, it will train them to deal with situations in a positive way when it really matters.

Learn the 5 ways to wire your kid’s brain for happiness here.

Secondly, we can prepare them for the different types of people they will meet throughout life. By doing this, we can equip them with the tools needed to interact with all kinds of people in a constructive and beneficial way.

Related: 5 Safety Tips to Teach Kids

Worried about unhealthy boundaries? Learn about Enmeshed Parenting here.

6 Types of People Your Kid Will Face

While you may argue that there are many different types of people on this big blue planet, there are 6 strong personality types that your child will unavoidably interact with.

Learning about these 6 specific personality traits can help kids proactively learn and develop important social skills.

1) Critics

Some people search for faults in others – as if they will earn a reward when they find them.

Critics, or people who search for shortcomings in others, are everywhere.

There is no doubt that your child will have to interact with judgmental Judy or Joe.

These types of people will try to make your child feel like they are not good enough. They will question why they do things a certain way.

Luckily, you can teach your child how to respond to critics.

How to handle critics:

• Some people will criticize everything, don’t take what they say personally
• They usually have low self-esteem themselves
• The opinion of a critic is not the final word- it is just their opinion
• Either show them kindness or avoid them

Related: Understanding What Motivates Kids Based on Their Personality

2) People-pleasers

A people-pleaser is someone who goes above and beyond to make other people feel happy, while it sometimes hurts them.

While people-pleasers are often good friends and helpful people, they can easily be taken advantage of.

People-pleasers have a hard time standing up for themselves and voicing their opinion, for fear that it could create conflict.

Raise a compassionate kid by teaching them about these types of people.

How to interact with People-pleasers:

• Ask others for their opinion about a situation
• If you have a very agreeable friend, ask them how they really feel
• If someone is always helping others, offer to pitch in and share the load

Are you a People-pleaser? Follow this 5 Step Recovery Plan for People-Pleasers.

Is your kid a people-pleaser? Teach them how to stand up for themselves by doing this.

3) Gossipers

Even the word gossip is like an instant flashback to my middle-school years.

Like most pre-teens, I remember being on the giving and receiving ends of the gossip train. And looking back, both were as painful.

When someone’s entire conversation revolves around saying negative things about other people, you can bet on these two things:

1. They are talking about YOU behind YOUR back
2. There is a good chance if you tell them a “secret” it will not remain a secret for long

How to manage gossipers:

• Change the subject when they try to talk about someone
• Never give them gossip-worthy information (aka secrets or private information)
• Don’t get too close to these types of people

You may also like: Anger Management Coping Skills to Teach Kids

4) Bullies

The image of a bully has changed a lot since I was a kid. No longer is a bully the kid who is pinning the small kids against a locker for lunch money. Today’s bullies are crueler.

There is a larger focus on material things. And, well, there is social media.

Throughout life, there will always be bullies. In school, at the workplace and heck my daughter bullies me at home.

A bully is defined as a person who seeks to harm, intimidate, or control another person. Typically, the bully targets people who are seen as vulnerable. Bullies often have low self-esteem, too.

How to deal with bullies:

• Not everyone will like you, and that is okay
• Be confident- bullies lose their power if you don’t cower
• Avoid them as much as possible
• If you are worried that they will hurt you or someone, get an adult

Also read: Should you teach your kid that not everyone will like them?

5) One-uppers

Do you have a friend that responds to all of your stories with a bigger and better story? It’s usually the same person who is fidgeting and interrupting while you are speaking because they are so anxious to talk.

One-uppers aren’t necessarily bad friends, they just are self-focused or excited to share stories. However, they can be frustrating converse with.

How to have conversations with one-uppers:

• Don’t take it personally if they don’t seem interested in your stories
• You can’t expect them to listen and help with your problems
• Be kind to them, but bring your problems to other friends

You may also like: Printable Mindfulness activities for teens and kids

6) Believers

While there are some people out that may cause you harm, there are plenty of good people in the world. People who believe in you as a person and want to support you.

Find those people and keep them close. These are your people.

Believers truly care about you and value your relationship. They want to see you succeed.

Signs of a supporter:

• They are truly happy when you succeed
• They genuinely want to hear what you have to say
• Believers will show up to support you through both good and bad

You can teach your kid how to lift up others with this simple activity.

Final Thoughts on Different Types of People

Life will undoubtedly throw a lot of curve balls at your child.

Proactively teaching them how to deal with these types of people will help them field these life-curveballs – even if they are on the “B” team.

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