There's nothing better than completely defusing someone's nastiness with a smile and a kind word. I'm personally a bit more hot-headed than I'd like at times, so this has always been tough for me, but the few times I've managed to keep my cool and use this strategy? It's always worked out beautifully. Most of the time, being nice to someone who has been nothing but horrible throws them completely off balance.

This restaurant manager had a run-in with a wild Karen who had a real appetite for drama, but got handled so deftly that she spent the rest of the evening eating nothing but her own guilty conscience.