Real Life: Emotionally Disturbed People

Of course, you don’t always have the option of negotiating with a pro. When hostage negotiators find themselves dealing with a person of unbalanced brain—or worse, a terrorist—we try to remember that time is on our side. We don’t actually wait for someone to achieve enlightenment or get their act together. But as a general rule, resolve weakens over time. And in the case of chemically driven insanity, the craziness also may fade.

As an everyday negotiator, you’re unlikely to deal with real crazies—and if you happen to run into them, you probably will be able to run away. But a touch of insanity comes free of charge with every personality type. So while the following labels are extreme, at least one of them will apply in some way to most people you deal with in life.