How to Handle Embarrassing Situations

You are walking along, minding your own business and a crack in the sidewalk attacks you and you end up falling flat on your face in the middle of a busy street. What do you do in this situation? Read the following tips and you will be able to muddle your way through an embarrassing situation gracefully.

Instructions

1. Face the situation. The more you try not to acknowledge it, the more people will talk about it. Just face it and get it over with. The sooner you do that, the sooner you and everyone else can move on.

2. Laugh it off if it is appropriate. Don't start laughing at your boss when she states that your latest idea just cost the company millions. If you tripped in front of all of your co-workers while wearing a skirt, giving everyone a bird's-eye view of your choice of undergarments, well, that deserves a good laugh.

3. Forget about it and everyone else will soon follow suit.

4. Let people have their say. They are going to talk and laugh about it no matter what you say or do. Let them get it out of their system.

5. Laugh with them. Laugh every time someone else talks and laughs about it. This will take away their power to embarrass you further.

Tips & Warnings

• Remember that you are not alone. No one goes through life without encountering many embarrassing situations.

• If what people are saying is truly hurting your feelings, let them know about it. Chances are, they don't even know that they are hurting your feelings by talking about your faux pas.

• Don't get angry. Anger will do nothing to quell the situation, in fact, it will only further fuel the fire so keep your cool.

• Avoid dwelling on it. It is just one embarrassing moment in time. Dwelling will only make you upset.

• Hold your tongue. Don't try to get back at those laughing at you. This "tit-for-tat" game is childish.

Resources

• Read about embarrassing situations at Tell-Us-Your-Story.
• Get more tips on handling embarrassing situations.