Revenge is something many folks want when they’ve been wronged, or if someone has been rude to them. This question is one that is very personal, and one in which is up to the individual. Personally, if someone is rude to me, I just might want to give it right back to them. An example is in order to illustrate the point:

Let’s assume that you’ve just picked up an order at a fast food restaurant, and after receiving your food, the person behind the counter doesn’t say “Thank you”. Let’s also assume you eat at this restaurant a few times per month, and this very same person continues not to acknowledge your business. What would you do? Well, this very example happened to me, and I think it’s very rude to say the least. So I finally said to the employee, “You’re welcome”, and then waited for her response. She was taken aback for sure, and there was a pregnant pause until she finally realized her mistake, and then she said, “Oh, thank you”! In this case I believe she wasn’t being rude on purpose, she probably just had other things on her mind. But the moral to the story is that every single time I encounter her she makes it a point to say “Thank you”.

The above example is one in which being rude (some people might think my saying “You’re welcome” could be interpreted as me trying to catch her in the act, therefore being rude), was done was to point out her mistake. I didn’t want to go to her manager and rat on her, it wasn’t warranted because it was such a small point I figured I could handle it myself and let her discover on her own her fault. This is a case where giving it back to the person being rude actually worked out for the good.

Perhaps you’ve been in a situation where someone doesn’t hold the door open for you and lets it slam in your face, while you’re carrying some heavy bundles or a suitcase. That is certainly rude, and I believe you have every right to catch up to the culprit and say “Thank you so much for holding the door open for me”. Even though the rude person didn’t hold the door open, just maybe they might get the message so that in the future the door doesn’t slam on some elderly person, causing injury. Maybe this idiot might get the message that it’s just common courtesy to hold the door open for people behind you.

In summary, being rude to someone who’s been rude to you can be the right thing to do if there is a chance it teaches a lesson to the “rude person” that appears to only be concerned with themselves. The next time someone is rude to you and you want to teach them a lesson, try to be creative as you dish it right back to the them!