Having some control is good. It’s good to have self-control; control of your life; and control over your emotions. It’s even okay to have some control over others, such as children, spouses and co-workers (if you’re a manager). Such control is needed to give others direction and guidance when needed. But, then we must ask the question, “how much is too much control over others”? Some people have an obsessive need to control others. We’ve all heard the term “control freak”. According to the Wikipedia definition, a control freak is someone who has antisocial personality disorder and because of a lack of empathy cons and manipulates others. It can also be their own fears that drive their need to control the actions of others. They may be afraid that bad things will happen to them if things get out of control or they may be afraid their own imperfections will become known. So, instead of controlling their own behavior they try to control the behavior of others; then they won’t have to change. This obsessive need to control others’ actions can turn into bullying. At work it turns into managers micromanaging their employees. Bullying is the use of force or threats to dominate and intimidate others. It is frequently done by young people to others that seem weaker than them (those that are easier to intimidate). Of course bullying can occur in any relationship. The “bully” is just like the “control freak”. They both try to change others instead of changing themselves. It’s very difficult (if not impossible) to change the behavior of a bully or control freak, but there are some things you can try. First, try ignoring the hurtful behavior. If that doesn’t work, try confronting the bully/control freak and ask them to stop the behavior. Lastly, if all else fails, try to distance yourself from the bully/control freak. If you can’t distance yourself, because you have to see them at school or work, then report their behavior to someone in authority that can try to get them to stop the behavior.