1. “Just a friendly reminder...”

Passive aggresive behaviour isn’t always intentional. A study found that people who have these tendencies often just struggle with being honest about their emotions.

Here are phrases that we can avoid to not being passive aggresive

Softening a request might seem polite, but it can also be a form of passive aggression. Think of other “softeners” like “Thanks in advance” or “Hey, what’s our ETA looking like?”

If you’re asking for something as a boss or colleague, don’t pretend like you’re being a pal. It’s fine to be ex...

This phrase almost always prefaces something annoying or offensive.

What to say instead:

If so, it’s fine to say: “Is this a good time to talk? There’s something that’s been bothering me” or “I’m concerned about your performance. Let’s talk about it.”

This phrase implies disapproval. Other passive aggressive judgement signals include “Just so you know...” or “For future reference...”

Your listener hears a common refrain in each of these phrases: “I don’t agree. Don’t you know who I am? You messed up again.”

What to say ins...