As you play games online, you may come across people who do not abide by the rules or treat other gamers with dignity – these individuals are commonly known as Karens.
Karens are defined as entitled and aggressive individuals who do not comply with rules or guidelines, demanding to speak directly with a manager and expecting special treatment or asking to speak directly with him/her directly.
1. Don’t Take It Personal
It is imperative that when dealing with an angry Karen, you do not take their behavior personally. Doing so is an easy way to become embroiled in their turmoil as well as becoming overwhelmed and frustrated yourself.
There are a few steps you can take to help prevent this from occurring, one of the best being having contracts in place before beginning working with clients. This allows you to set realistic expectations while making it easier for any problems that might arise during service delivery.
Record all complaints you receive as part of managing and improving customer service, while keeping a record should you experience repeat customers later. This step will also serve to maintain transparency within your business and ensure customer service excellence is not lost over time.
Finally, when customers express displeasure with your services, do not take it personally. Remain calm and professional in dealing with an angry customer – this will ensure they won’t return again in the future.
Karen is an offensive term often used by conservatives to illustrate consumer entitlement and to reinforce restrictions on white female agency in retail settings.
2. Don’t Agree
One of the most enduring internet memes of recent years has been “Karen.” Karen refers to a type of middle-class white woman who exhibits behaviors rooted in privilege – including harassment of service industry workers, anti-vaccine advocacy and making racist microaggressions.
“Karen” has become a catchall term for this type of woman, leading many people to question whether it constitutes true racism or just another example of classism. British feminist commentator Julie Bindel recently tweeted that using “Karen” as a slur against women is woman-hating and motivated by class prejudice.
Through 2020, this term was often used to denigrate white women who opposed social distancing, anti-racism and other controversial topics – this trend became particularly apparent as coronavirus pandemic hit US soil and protests for racial justice intensified.
Some consider Karen a stereotype of middle-class white women while others claim its roots lie within black American internet culture. Whatever your opinion on the term, remember not to agree with an angry Karen because they may not always be correct in their position.
As with any angry person, it’s important to keep in mind that they are only trying to provoke you by shouting, gesturing or throwing toys from their pram to get your blood boiling.
When this occurs, it’s best to remain calm and rational while being firm without patronizing. Doing this may prevent antagonizing them while making them feel that their feelings are being heard.
Last, it is essential to recognize that Karens are just people with their own struggles in life. Their anger stems from feeling powerless over themselves and they believe that by demeaning others and making others angry they will find some sense of self-worth again.
3. Don’t Be Afraid to Say No
One of the best ways to deal with an angry Karen is not being afraid to say no. While this may initially feel awkward and uncomfortable, doing so will save everyone involved from harm and ensure healthy and strong relationships between all involved.
As well as showing that you can handle a negative reaction from someone who doesn’t mean any harm, a quick, courteous and generous “no” response is often preferable to no response whatsoever.
Finding your voice when it comes to saying no can be tricky at first, especially with unfamiliar things. Once you become comfortable with saying no, however, you’ll find yourself saying more – without feeling guilty about doing so!
Likely, your Karen meltdown will likely be caused by feelings and situations that have been bothering you for some time now – such as feeling powerless over something or being taken advantage of or an entitlement complex.
If Karen is making you angry, the key to managing her is not ignoring or capitulating to it; rather, understand what causes it in the first place. Consulting experts such as social psychologists or therapists could be beneficial in understanding exactly what’s going on inside of your head.
Experts point out that entitlement is one of the main drivers behind Karen breakdowns, along with individualistic attitudes or not wanting to be told what to do. Other triggers may include having too much authority imposed upon them.
4. Be Patient
Anger Karens are dangerous individuals to encounter. Intense anger and frustration have built up in them over time, making them unwilling to change their behaviour in any significant way. Their frustration at life, the world, and others has manifested into deep-seated dislike for everything in it, including you!
When dealing with an Angry Karen, patience and understanding are the keys to successful interaction. She may feel abandoned by society and angry that her voice hasn’t been heard – therefore making any actions they take likely provoking more anger from her part of the world than anything she might say outwards. Therefore it is vitally important that one must remain patient when engaging them.
Make an effort to inject some positive energy into the situation so it does not just fade away. Doing this will defuse it and lessen its chance of going wrong in future.
Karens should always be treated with compassion as they are often in an emotionally fragile state of mind, likely shouting and gesticulating towards you, trying to throw items from their pram at you or berated you for doing something they dislike. You need to remember this when being patient with them!
At such a vulnerable time, it is not advisable to argue with Karen; their anger could easily escalate and they may strike out at you in return. Instead, patience should always be shown; these people are very fragile individuals and could do anything to cause a reaction and provoke it in others.
5. Do Your Research
When dealing with customers who display an adverse attitude, it’s essential not to take it personally. Remember that your customer may simply be venting their ire at something they find offending; they aren’t trying to harm either yourself or your business in any way.
No matter how carefully you prepare, there remains the possibility that Karen could still choose to write an unfair review on Google or post negative remarks about you online. You need to conduct proper research so you can respond in an effective way when this occurs.
Although being calm and firm are essential, you must remember that being so won’t change Karen’s mind. Therefore it is wise to avoid engaging in any confrontations as these could potentially cost your business dearly.
“Karen” has become an internet slang term that refers to white women who leverage their privilege for personal gain. Over the years, this term has spread throughout social media networks and become more prevalent.
As Hank Stuever has pointed out, this term can be seen as a form of casual racism and many have noted its sexist undertones.
Karen is quickly replacing “Becky”, the term for white women who act insensitively toward race, as an identity-marking performative white privilege trope that feminizes performances of innocence and guilt in Black Twitter and other spaces.
Recent years have witnessed a clear trend, particularly during pandemics. An increasing number of individuals have been labeled “Karens” in videos they create – some even becoming viral hits and receiving worldwide recognition.
