It is not often that you meet dumb people who create great frustration and waste of time, whether it is at work or in personal relationships. Dealing with such people is a challenge, especially if you want to avoid getting into trouble. Here are some ways to go about it.
Try to make them understand
The first thing to understand is that many people who are dumb are not trying to do so intentionally. They are naturally slow to understand things and might be trying their best to cope with the situation, just as you are trying to deal with them. An understanding of his/her plight will make you more receptive towards his/her mental makeup and help them through the ordeal. Try your best to explain what you are trying to tell them. Dumb people might have already faced and gone through a lot of ridicule and rejection, and might be shy and reticent to ask you for further explanations. Understanding them and offering further explanation would make them feel better and help them cope as well and become more confident and receptive. Repeat as much as you can and as gently and pleasantly as possible.
Patience is always necessary
There is no other way to deal with a dumb person other than being patient with them. We are talking about oodles of patience here, failing which you can lose your cool and make matters worse. Be very patient in explaining things to them in the simplest of manner so that they understand and make an effort to do their best to follow the guidelines or rules put forward by you. Assuming that they are really dumb, they would most probably be employed in less competent jobs and do not require much expertise or brains. Therefore, it may not be difficult for you to find a simple way to make them understand or do things which you want them to do. A step by step version of what you want them to do in a simple and very transparent format, probably a printout of the steps made available to them might do the trick. Give them extra guidance like ticking the task which has already been completed, going through the work again to ensure accuracy, etc., will help in most cases. Again, patience and extra effort is necessary from your part.
Suppress your urge to react
In spite of the most elaborate instructions planned and laid out before them, dumb people might still fail miserably. This should be expected in the initial training period and in such cases, you must never lose your cool and react in an unfavorable manner. This might put them off and even lead to a situation where they lose whatever little progress they have gained through your guidance. Be patient and keep your options open for forgiveness and understanding of their disabilities in the initial period. Set a time frame for coaching and improvement and ensure that you do not react violently to the mistakes committed during this time. The best way to avoid reacting is to avoid giving them important jobs at this time so that even if they commit mistakes, it will not be a grave mistake that it hinders your efficiency or work, or personal relations.
Assess the situation
Though it may not be a frequent occurrence, there are people who act dumb to get ahead in life. Such people must be identified immediately and eliminated. It does not require much effort to identify people who are really dumb or those who are acting dumb. Watching them for a few days, inquiring discreetly to others who deal with the person and looking for loopholes in his/her behavior will help you identify false attitudes. People who act dumb may be dangerous as they could have dubious plans that may be dangerous for your company or personal relations. They should be removed from your services as soon as possible to avoid untoward incidents and situations.
Devise ways to accept their stupidity
If you have assessed all possibilities and have made every possible attempt to deal with a dumb person and have given him/her enough opportunities to prove his/her worth, and he/she still remains dumb, to say the least, it is time that you took a serious decision. You may either let him/her continue in some work that does not require him/her to be very efficient or ask the person to leave with an honest explanation as to why he/she is being fired and that you have given him/her enough time to improve and prove his/her efficiency.
