Every day, someone is trying to influence you—and not always for your benefit.

At work, at home, in relationships, and even in everyday encounters with strangers, manipulation is everywhere. It’s in the friendly coworker who makes you feel guilty for saying no, the partner who keeps shifting the rules, the relative who plays the victim to get their way, and the salesperson who creates false urgency to push you into a decision.

Most people don’t see it happening until it’s too late. By then, they’ve already given away their time, their trust, their resources—or their power.

How to Handle Manipulative People: Spot the Lies, Stop the Games, and Take Back Control is your complete guide to spotting manipulation in real time, disarming it without unnecessary conflict, and protecting yourself from falling into someone else’s game. Written in a sharp, direct style that’s easy to follow, this book cuts through the fog and exposes exactly how manipulators operate—step by step, tactic by tactic—so you can recognize their moves the instant they appear.

Inside, you’ll discover how to:

•Identify the masks manipulators wear—and spot the subtle cracks that reveal their true intentions.

•Catch emotional “hooks” before they set, whether they come in the form of flattery, guilt, pity, or false debts.

•Break free from urgency traps designed to make you act before you think.

•Defuse the currency of fear so it can’t be used to control your decisions.

•Recognize and counter subtle threats hidden behind politeness and concern.

•Protect yourself from the long game—the patient manipulator who builds control slowly over time.

•Turn the tables with calm, strategic responses that disrupt their control without escalating the situation.

•Walk away when the only winning move is to leave the game entirely.