The word manipulation in itself has a negative connotation and the actions behind it are no different. Although there can be a positive spin on this word especially when it comes to certain situations, manipulation is almost always an action that benefits only one party.
In the literal sense, the word just means control but with regards to actions, it is a tool that people use at times to get what they want from others in specific ciscumstances.
When we think about it, manipulation can be considered a skill. Being able to control and twist a situation in a way that benefits your own self even at the expense of others requires certain observations and oratory talents.
However, this in no way means that manipulation is something that people should practice. In fact, it is better to stay away from those who indulge in this habit on a frequent basis.
Intriguing Quotes about Manipulation
1. “The basic tool for the manipulation of reality is the manipulation of words. If you can control the meaning of words, you can control the people who must use the words.” – Philip K. Dick
2. “Everybody has the ability to be manipulative, to be hateful and deceitful.” – Neil LaBute
3. “Are you trying to manipulate me? It’s working.” – Bridget Moynahan
4. “The best way to manipulate a man is to make him think he is manipulating you.” – John Smith
5. “Manipulation can give you anything in life you want, if you can afford it.” – M.F. Moonzajer
6. “Foreknowledge of the future makes it possible to manipulate both enemies and supporters.” – Raymond Aron
7. “If you don’t give education to people, it is easy to manipulate them.” – Pele
8. “All writing is a form of manipulation, of course, but you realize that a plain sentence can actually do so much.” – Colm Toibin
9. “When you know what a man wants, you know who he is, and how to move him.” – George R.R. Martin
10. “Poetry is a street fighter. It has sharp elbows. It can look after itself. Poetry can’t be used for manipulation; it’s why you never see good poetry in advertising.” – David Whyte
11. “I’m constantly lying to my dog. He only responds to manipulation and blackmail.” – Riley Keough
12. When people learn no tools of judgment and merely follow their hopes, the seeds of political manipulation are sown. – Stephen Jay Gould
13. “The mind starts to do things that you didn’t even realize it could do. I suppose it’s the manipulation. I suppose it’s the sense of power, the center of attention, and the me-ism. And performers have to have that.” – Johnny Carson
14. “You can’t manipulate people who know how to think for themselves.” – Trish Mercer
15. “Belief can be manipulated. Only knowledge is dangerous.” – Frank Herbert
16. “Half of the people lie with their lips; the other half with their tears.” – Nassim Nicholas Taleb
17. “I’m not upset that you lied to me, I’m upset that from now on I can’t believe you.” – Friedrich Nietzsche
18. “I lie to myself all the time. But I never believe me.” – S.E. Hinton
19. “There are three types of lies — lies, damn lies, and statistics.” – Benjamin Disraeli
20. “Things come apart so easily when they have been held together with lies.” – Dorothy Allison
21. “When it comes to controlling human beings, there is no better instrument than lies. Because you see, humans live by beliefs. And beliefs can be manipulated. The power to manipulate beliefs is the only thing that counts.” – Michael Ende
22. “You can fool some of the people all of the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you cannot fool all of the people all of the time.” – Abraham Lincoln
23. “No one believes a liar. Even when she’s telling the truth.” – Sara Shepard
24. “The art of pleasing is the art of deception.” – Luc De Clapiers
25. “Above all, don’t lie to yourself. The man who lies to himself and listens to his own lie comes to a point that he cannot distinguish the truth within him, or around him, and so loses all respect for himself and for others. And having no respect he ceases to love.” – Fyodor Dostoyevsky
26. “Appear weak when you are strong, and strong when you are weak.” – Sun Tzu
27. “There are two ways to be fooled. One is to believe what isn’t true; the other is to refuse to believe what is true.” – Søren Kierkegaard
28. “Manipulation, fueled with good intent, can be a blessing. But when used wickedly, it is the beginning of a magician’s karmic calamity.” – T.F. Hodge
29. “One must change one’s tactics every ten years if one wishes to maintain one’s superiority.” – Napoleon Bonaparte
30. “The thing women have yet to learn is nobody gives you power. You just take it.” – Roseanne Barr
31. “Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind.” – Rudyard Kipling
32. “When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace.” – Jimi Hendrix
33. “Beware; for I am fearless, and therefore powerful.” – Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley
34. “You need to learn how to select your thoughts just the same way you select your clothes every day. This is a power you can cultivate. If you want to control things in your life so bad, work on the mind. That’s the only thing you should be trying to control.” – Elizabeth Gilbert
35. “You have power over your mind – not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength.” – Marcus Aurelius
36. “The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any.” – Alice Walker
37. “Expose yourself to your deepest fear; after that, fear has no power, and the fear of freedom shrinks and vanishes. You are free.” – Jim Morrison
38. “True love is built on free will and free choice, not control and manipulation.” – Ken Poirot
39. “Abuse grows from attitudes and values, not feelings. The roots are ownership, the trunk is entitlement, and the branches are control.” – Lundy Bancroft
40. “I do respect people’s faith, but I don’t respect their manipulation of that faith in order to create fear and control.” – Javier Bardem
41. “No one has the patent on you.” – Katie St. Claire
42. “A bird cannot love freely when caged.” – MatshonaDhliwayo
43. “People turned against each other cannot turn against those responsible.” – DaShanne Stokes
44. “You can’t control the weather, but that doesn’t stop some people from trying.” – Frank Sonnenberg
45. “Domineering-types may appear omnipotent but, inevitably, will smother everything they love and lose all.” – Stewart Stafford
46. “One should be able to control and manipulate experiences with an informed and intelligent mind.” – Sylvia Plath
47. “Resentment is like drinking poison and waiting for the other person to die.” – Carrie Fisher
48. “Anger, resentment and jealousy doesn’t change the heart of others– it only changes yours.” – Shannon L. Alder
49. “Jealousy is such an ugly emotion.” – Cassandra Clare
50. “Our envy always lasts longer than the happiness of those we envy.” – François de La Rochefoucauld
51. “He seems like a man who knows what he wants, and the problem is he wants what I want.” – Abbi Glines
52. “I measured love by the extent of my jealousy.” – Graham Greene
53. “Jealousy, that dragon which slays love under the pretense of keeping it alive.” – H. Havelock Ellis
54. “Envy is when you want what someone else has. Jealousy’s when you also don’t want them to have it.” – Kirsten Hubbard
55. “Jealousy’s a weak emotion.” – Jay-Z
56. “Don’t waste your time on jealousy. Sometimes you’re ahead, sometimes you’re behind. The race is long, and in the end, it’s only with yourself.” – Baz Luhrmann
57. “Until you realize how easy it is for your mind to be manipulated, you remain the puppet of someone else’s game.” – Evita Ochel
58. “The people who would like to manipulate and use you won’t tell you your blind spots. They may plan to continue using them to their advantage.” – AssegidHabtewold
59. “Nothing manipulates people more than the desire to please.” – Zoe Durlock
60. “It was easier to manipulate someone if they didn’t perceive you as a threat.” – Stephanie Wrobel
61. “Life is a constant daily manipulation.” – Deyth Banger
62. “To break yourself loose from the dominion, ruler-ship and manipulation of the devil, you have to embrace light (knowledge).” – Sunday Adelaja
63. “Don’t become manipulated by the illusion of who you think you are, or who you think you should be.” – Steven Redhead
64. “When manipulation flutters around everywhere, neither pull nor push anyone. Just do one thing – don’t trust anyone!” – Ashish Patel
65. “I might be manipulating you to create risk for myself.” – Sharon Stone
66. “The time we spend caring about people and loving them could have also been used for manipulating and seducing.” – M.F. Moonzajer
Techniques and Tactics of Manipulation that Are Part of Our Personalities
Here is an interesting video that details 11 different types of tactics that are counted as manipulation. Some of these are positive while others are negative as well. Watch the video and see if any of these fit your personality as well.
Summary
A manipulative person is someone who believes in exercising exceptional control over the other person. Such a person will go to any lengths in getting what they really want. Therefore, it is always best to keep such toxic people away from your life.
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