If somebody did something he did not like, he would rant and rave pretending to be highly upset. Everyone knew him and they mostly just ignored him and went on with their activities. He had a need to show everybody how tough he was. His wife knew the real story. The truth is he was quite tamed and occasionally been known to flee from cats.

She was careful not to let that get out, because she knew it would bruise his ego. She decided that only a precious few would know, so he continued to be the bad guy that he was not. People did not fear him. They mostly just ignored him. When he drove, and some one cut him off, he would yell and shake his fist at them.

One day he and his wife were driving home from the shopping mall, when an SUV pulled out in front of Dean almost causing an accident. Dean could not believe it. He was determined to get even with this guy. He pulls up even with the guy at the next stop sign and started yelling and making verbal threats.

He was yelling and screaming at the SUV. The guy in the SUV just looked at him at first and tried to ignore him. Dean was persistent. He must have struck a chord with the guy. The guy put his SUV in park and got out of the truck and started walking toward Dean. The guy was about 6 feet 8 inches tall and 290 pounds and looked liked he carried 50 pound weights in his pockets.

Deans wife wondered, what has he gotten us into now. The guy was visibly pist off and Dean knew it. He walked over to Deans car and motioned him to roll down the window. Dean did not comply. The guy was having a fit on the outside of Deans car. Dean tried to leave but the guy stood in front of their car.

Dean was frightened but the only thing he could do was stay in the car. His bad attitude had suddenly been replaced with fear. At that moment a patrol car pulled up. Dean was relieved. The cop got out and began talking to the big guy. He must have told the cop a believable story. The cop asked the guy to get into his vehicle move on.

The guy looked back at Dean with a nasty gaze. He got in his vehicle and left. Dean never learned his lesson he continues to pretend to be the bad boy of the area. His wife rarely rides anywhere with him any more.

Most people do not go looking for trouble. Attitude issues can get you in trouble. It always seems like people with biggest egos are not really what they seem to be. A little ego management will go a long way towards keeping you out of trouble.

Escalating an already bad situation solves nothing. Unless you have a clear purpose for doing so, it is best not to make threats, especially ones that you can not materialize. If you are approached with a threat be prepared to defend yourself. You goal is not to defeat the perpetrator but to allow time for you to escape.