7 signs of ‘highly insecure’ people—and why they’re so toxic to everyone else, according to a psychology expert

Working with difficult personalities can dampen our ability to think clearly and make sound decisions.

As a leadership consultant who studies workplace psychology, I’ve spent more than 30 years helping thousands of individuals and teams at multimillion-dollar organizations navigate tough relationships.

And through my research, I’ve found that insecure people are often the most difficult to deal with.

While feeling insecure is natural, problematic behaviors can develop when people consistently attempt to conceal or compensate for their self-doubt.

Insecure types are extremely risk averse and unproductive. Some can be downright nasty or display abusive behaviors.

Here are their most common toxic behaviors, according to Harvard career expert Amy Gallo:

1. They are overly concerned about what others think of them.
2. They never express a firm opinion.
3. They suffer from a chronic inability to make decisions, even when the choices have little consequence.
4. They frequently try to change the direction of projects and meetings.
5. They put other people down to make themselves look more important.
6. They constantly talk about how busy they are (when they’re actually not) to show that they are in demand.
7. They are paranoid meddlers who make you question your every move.

Insecure types — whether in the form of a team member or boss — are all around us, so it’s important to know how to deal with them efficiently.

The first step is to activate your detective mindset. Turn interacting with insecure people into a learning opportunity.

1. Assess the size of the problem.

Count the interactions you’ve had with the insecure person. How many have been bad? All? Half? Less than a third?

You’ve now answered the most important question: How big is the problem? If you have more good interactions than bad, maybe the person is not that difficult.

2. Identify the root causes of the problem.

Think about the negative interactions you’ve had…