NEGATIVE TRAIT THESAURUS

PUSHY



Never struggle with Show-and-Tell again. Activate your free trial or subscribe to view the Negative Trait Thesaurus in its entirety, or visit the Table of Contents to explore unlocked entries.

CHOOSE MY PLAN

HELPFUL TIP:

Characters with this flaw will be extra sensitive to certain emotions, so think about how events in your story might specifically trigger these feelings to generate compelling tension and conflict. Another idea is to give a supporting character a positive attribute that is an opposite of this flaw, which will get under the skin of both characters and cause friction in their relationship.
DEFINITION:
Overly assertive; in-your-face

SIMILAR FLAWS:
Aggressive, bossy, demanding, forceful, overbearing

POSSIBLE CAUSES:
A drive to excel or succeed
Needing to control or be in charge
Exhibiting taught behavior (domineering parents, siblings, friends, etc.)
Having an overindulged childhood
Insecurity that results in a need to prove something (intelligence, knowledge, being right, etc.)
Self-righteousness
Poor communication skills
Impaired social skills
Narcissism
Overconfidence

ASSOCIATED BEHAVIORS AND ATTITUDES:
Having high standards
Not taking "No" for an answer
Disrespecting the personal space and boundaries of others
Making judgments
Using shame or guilt trips to get one's way
Prying, hounding, and nagging
Making verbal threats or insults
Intimidation
Brazen forwardness
Ignoring social cues of discomfort
Pushing others to excel in areas one did not (especially one's children)
...

ASSOCIATED THOUGHTS:
...

ASSOCIATED EMOTIONS:
...

POSITIVE ASPECTS:
...

NEGATIVE ASPECTS:
...

EXAMPLE FROM FILM:
...

OVERCOMING THIS TRAIT AS A MAJOR FLAW:
...

TRAITS IN SUPPORTING CHARACTERS THAT MAY CAUSE CONFLICT:
...