11 Mind-Numbing Habits Of People Who Think They Can’t Do Anything Wrong
When someone thinks they can do no wrong, they can be incredibly annoying to deal with.
ViChizh / Shutterstock We’ve all met someone who thinks they can do no wrong. While there are people who can apologize with ease and admit when they’ve made a mistake, let’s face it, it’s never easy to admit fault. For some, it can be impossible. Many factors go into why someone has a difficult time coming to terms with their mistakes. Whether they struggle to see any problems within themselves, or their ego is too fragile to admit when they are wrong, it’s hard to have relationships, romantic or platonic, with these individuals.
“Some people don’t take responsibility or admit they are wrong because they believe they are always in fact, 'right,’” notes Lynn Margolies, Ph.D. “The inability to 'mentalize,' which involves being able to self-reflect and relate to a perspective or mindset other than one’s own, can be an obstacle to empathy, connection, and repair.” When someone has the idea that they are always right, it can feel impossible to maintain a relationship with them, especially when they have mind-numbing habits that make it difficult to be around them.
These are 11 mind-numbing habits of people who think they can’t do anything wrong
1. They gaslight others
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The term ‘gaslighting’ has become popular in psychology over the last several years. It originated from the 1930s play and the following movie by the same name, which premiered in the 1940s. Gaslighting is a form of manipulation that people who think they do no wrong use to convince others.
“Gaslighting is an insidious form of manipulation and psychological control,” Psychology Today explains. “Victims of gaslighting are deliberately and systematically fed false information that leads them to question what they know to be true, often about themselves.”
This is a powerful tactic for those who think they can’t do anything wrong. By convincing the other person that they’re wrong about their perception of events, it can work in their favor to avoid apologizing.
2. They never apologize
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It’s obvious that when someone can’t see any faults in their own behavior, they never apologize. They don’t care how their actions made someone else feel. They’re convinced that anything they do is correct, and they should never feel sorry about the choices they made. Someone else’s reaction is on them, not the person who thinks they did no wrong.
They may have this perspective because their egos are so mighty that nothing can bring them down. Others who feel like they never do anything wrong could also be fearful of the consequences that come with admitting their bad behavior. Either way, it can be mind-numbing to be in a relationship with someone who is incapable of apologizing.
3. They are manipulative
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Emotional manipulation is a common tactic that people who believe they do no wrong use in their daily lives. It’s an easy way to avoid an apology by guilt-tripping the other person and convincing them that they are actually at fault.
“Manipulative people don’t often own up to their mistakes or wrongdoings. If it isn’t someone else’s fault, manipulative people often will find an excuse as to why it is, and it can be compelling,” says Better Help. “There is rarely any sense of accountability. This is because some manipulators may experience the two types of narcissism, grandiose and vulnerable narcissism. Grandiose narcissists feel self-entitled and have a sense of superiority, while vulnerable narcissists may feel entitled but are usually anxious or nervous in nature. Both grandiose and vulnerable narcissists may manipulate others.”
4. They are constantly bragging
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When someone thinks they can’t do anything wrong, it’s no surprise that they constantly share how impressive their achievements are. The littlest things can be worth talking up for these individuals.
However, there may be a deeper reason behind this behavior. Someone who is convinced they can do no wrong suffers from a fragile ego. They seek validation for their behavior by trying to impress those around them.
Since their egos take a major blow when someone tries to tell them they did wrong, they hope to avoid it by bragging about their lives to keep others engaged.
5. They treat everything as a competition
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Someone who thinks they can’t do anything wrong loves a good competition. This comes from their idea that they will always succeed. It also helps maintain their ego. When they outperform someone, it instantly affirms to them that they are better than everyone else.
The psychology of competitiveness is a spectrum. I know that personally, I love good, healthy competition when it serves a purpose. But for people who believe they do nothing wrong, proving they are smarter, better, and stronger than everyone else is their main purpose. They think it shows others that they truly never do anything wrong. They are showing them that they succeed at everything.
6. They make everything about themselves
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Have you ever tried to share a story with someone about yourself? Maybe it was about a project you completed at work that went well, or a personal anecdote about your newest relationship. Telling a friend about the successes in your life always feels good. But people who believe they are never wrong will find a way to flip your stories and make them about themselves.
One thing that drives me nuts is when I’m excited about something and someone interjects to talk about themselves. Since those who think they are never wrong also believe they are better than everyone else, they love to barge in to talk about themselves.
That project you nailed at work? Yeah, they’ve nailed 100 projects that have all been better than yours. It’s mind-numbing.
7. They blame others for their actions
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It’s not surprising that people who think they are incapable of wrongdoing find ways to blame everyone but themselves for their actions. It is one of the most common mind-numbing habits they perform. How could they be wrong when someone else is to blame?
“Blaming is usually considered part of the defense mechanism called projection, which involves denying one’s own anxiety-provoking or negative characteristics and seeing them instead in others,” says Arash Emamzadeh. He added, "Are certain individuals more likely to shift blame onto others? Yes, according to a recent series of investigations by [psychologist] Kaufmann and colleagues, Blamers tend to have difficulties with emotion regulation.”
8. They use ‘whataboutisms’
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Nothing is more frustrating than trying to tell someone how their actions made you feel and being met with, “Well, what about…” When you are looking for an apology, it’s not going to come from someone who turns the situation back on you. It’s mind-numbing how they can find a way to wiggle their way out of anything.
“A major problem with Whataboutism is that it suggests that two wrongs somehow make a right. When we counter a partner’s complaint with a complaint of our own, we’re basically sending the message that we’re entitled to act in ways that are negative, hurtful, or uncaring because that’s what we believe the other person is doing, and we’re saying that our partners have to earn our concern and responsiveness by changing their own behavior,” writes therapist Lindsey Hoskins. “One of the hallmarks of healthy relationships is that partners work to correct their own negative behaviors simply because they don’t want to inflict pain on their partners, and they endeavor toward this without waiting for the other person to make the first move toward change.”
This, of course, can take place in both romantic and platonic relationships.
9. They are rigid in their thoughts
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For someone who thinks they are always right, it’s hard for them to change their opinions. They become rigid in their mindset, as it fits their narrative that they are always right. Studies have shown that rigid thinking has been common in psychology for decades.
“Our theory predicts that once you've become accustomed to a particular simplification of reality, you will have trouble switching to a new one even when it would be more useful to do so,” writes Mark Ho, an Assistant Professor at Stevens Institute of Technology. “Switching is hard because it takes effort to reconfigure how to think about a problem. It's a bit like the effort involved in switching between speaking different languages.”
10. They withhold affection
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When someone thinks they are always right, a mind-numbing habit they have is refusing to give affection and admiration to others. It’s difficult for them to see positive attributes in other people when they view them as constant competition. Even for their closest loved ones, they will find it hard to show them that they appreciate them.
Viewing everyone as inferior to themselves, they withhold affection because they believe they should be receiving it, not giving it. It’s complicated for these types of people to affirm others when they are constantly seeking it themselves.
11. They hold grudges
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When someone thinks they are always right, they have a hard time accepting criticism. If a person in their life gives them feedback they don’t appreciate, they will shut down. It’s easy for these people to cut out others who do not see them as faultless. They only want those around them to feed their ego, not push back on their behavior.
Holding a grudge comes naturally for people who think they are always right. They will have a hard time ‘forgiving’ anyone who does not feed into their narrative.
Haley Van Horn is a freelance writer with a master’s degree in Humanities, living in Los Angeles. Her focus includes entertainment and lifestyle stories.
